Dikembe Mutombo is being treated for a brain tumor


NBA legend and Basketball Hall of Famer Dikembe Mutombo is being treated for a brain tumor in Atlanta, the league said on Saturday.

The 56-year-old former shot blocker superstar is “in the best of moods”, a expression reads from the NBA on behalf of his family.

“He is receiving the best possible care from a collaborative team of specialists in Atlanta and is in high spirits as he begins treatment,” the statement said. “Dikembe and his family are asking for privacy during this time so they can focus on his care. They are grateful for your prayers and good wishes.”

NBA Commissioner Adam Silver added, “Our thoughts and prayers are with Dikembe, one of the greatest humanists in the world.”

Born in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the 7ft 2in Mutombo first came to Washington’s Georgetown University on an academic scholarship in 1987 – and rose to fame when he joined the basketball team in his sophomore year.

Selected fourth in the 1991 NBA draft by the Denver Nuggets, Mutombo was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year four times and All-Star eight times. He played 18 seasons for Denver, Atlanta Hawks, Philadelphia 76ers, New Jersey Nets, New York Knicks and Houston Rockets.

He retired second on the league’s suspended bats list and was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2015.

Off the field, he is known for his humanitarian work. In 1997, two years before retiring from the NBA, Mutombo established the Dikembe Mutombo Foundation with the aim of improving education and quality of life in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.