Retired NBA star Dikembe Mutombo arrives for the Shenzhen match of the NBA China Games between Dallas Mavericks and Philadelphia 76ers in Shenzhen city, south China's Guangdong province FILE. The Congo-born Dikembe Mutombo was widely hailed as one of the best defensive players in the NBA and frequently came up against the legendary Michael Jordan Picture: Zhong Zhenbin/Imaginechina/Imaginechina via AFP
Few sporting rivalries over the years had quite the same spice as that of the late Dikembe Mutombo and Michael Jordan in the NBA.
The legendary basketball player Mutombo died on Monday at the age of 58 after battling brain cancer.
The Congo-born Mutombo was widely hailed as one of the best defensive players in the NBA and frequently came up against the legendary Jordan. Mutombo was known for his ‘finger-wag’ gesture after putting in a block, which became his trademark.
The NBA wrote about the Mutombo finger wag: “He wagged that index finger part-playfully, part-sternly, like a scolding parent, right after blocking a shot and sending the basketball into orbit, often toward the fifth row. This instantly had fans wagging their finger in response. It happened often, a stark scene caused by one of the greatest defensive players in NBA history.”
"You haven't got me yet." —Dikembe Mutombo to Michael Jordan
— The Jordan Rules (@Rules23Jordan) August 12, 2022
MJ made sure he dunked on Dikembe later that season and gave him the classic finger wag #NBA#BullsNation pic.twitter.com/di7tI7TVDY
Mutombo famously insisted that Jordan had never ‘dunked on him’, and once the Chicago Bulls star forward did later that season what followed quickly became legend.
After Jordan pulled off the dunk, he used Mutombo’s signature finger wag back at him in cheeky defiance - in what was a moment that was relived for years to come.
The 2.18m-tall centre played for a number of NBA teams throughout his career which spanned from 1991 to 1996. The teams included the Denver Nuggets, Atlanta Hawks, Philadelphia 76ers and New York Knicks.
"Dikembe Mutombo was simply larger than life," NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said in a statement. "On the court, he was one of the greatest shot blockers and defensive players in the NBA. Off the floor, he poured his heart and soul into helping others."
Mutombo was surrounded by his family when he died, according to the statement.