ATLANTA — NBA legend and Hawks great Dikembe Mutombo has died at 58 from brain cancer, the NBA said Monday in a league statement.
He was surrounded by family at the time of his passing, the league statement said.
The 7-foot-2 center from the Democratic Republic of Congo was renowned for his defense and shot-blocking. He was a four-time defensive player of the year award winner, 8-time all-star and three times made the All-NBA team.
Mutombo was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2015.
He played with the Hawks from 1996-2001, making the All-Star team four times and winning the DPOY award twice. His No. 55 jersey is retired by the team.
"We are deeply saddened by the news of Dikembe Mutombo’s passing. Dikembe was a proud and honorable man, who lived up to the definition of a word that became synonymous with his name – humanitarian," a team statement on behalf of Hawks Principal Owner Tony Ressler said. "He used his many gifts and his platform to improve the lives of everyone he encountered, especially in his homeland of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and throughout Africa."
"Dikembe Mutombo was simply larger than life," a statement from NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said. "On the court, he was one of the greatest shot blockers and defensive players in the history of the NBA. Off the floor, he poured his heart and soul into helping others."
The statement also hailed Mutombo as "the NBA's first Global Ambassador" and a "humanitarian at his core."
Part of that profile beyond basketball included his efforts to support polio vaccination efforts in the Democratic Republic of the Congo -- efforts for which he was recognized with a humanitarian award by the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health in 2011.
"He loved what the game of basketball could do to make a positive impact on communities, especially in his native Democratic Republic of the Congo and across the continent of Africa," Silver said. "I had the privilege of traveling the world with Dikembe and seeing first-hand how his generosity and compassion uplifted people. He was always accessible at NBA events over the years - with his infectious smile, deep booming voice and signature finger wag that endeared him to basketball fans of every generation."
Mutombo is survived by his wife Rose and their children, Silver's statement said, as well as his friends and "the global basketball community which he truly loved and which loved him back."