Dikembe Mutombo Quotes

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Dikembe Mutombo

Profession : Athlete

Birth : June 25, 1966

The Almighty has plans for us to make a place so we can go on and make a difference. It all has to do with my faith; I am deeply religious. It goes back to my roots, to my mom and my dad.

Dikembe Mutombo

My heroes always are mostly my parents - my father especially, and my mom, who's passed on already. My dad is a very strong man, and by him being educated, and a principal and school superintendent over 37 years, he plays such a big role in my life.

Dikembe Mutombo

Basketball Without Borders is a leadership camp that takes basketball to different places around the world, to Africa, Europe, America and Asia. It's a camp that brings players from different parts of the continent to one city that's been assigned as the host city. We've been going to a different city every year.

Dikembe Mutombo

God put us here to prepare this place for the next generation. That's our job. Raising children and helping the community, that's preparing for the next generation.

Dikembe Mutombo

There are people out there dying every day, so when you wake up, you just have to thank the Man Upstairs for another day on this planet. There's not much else we can ask for.

Dikembe Mutombo

The doctors and nurses at the Biamba Marie Mutombo Hospital are saving lives every day and helping improve health care in the DRC which has been ravaged by more than a decade of war and disease.

Dikembe Mutombo

I was not very strong growing up, and my uncle used to look at me, like, 'This kid is not growing up, he is growing tall but he can be broken like a banana.' The banana in Congo is called 'Dikembe.' So my uncle start calling me, 'Dikembe, Dikembe, look at you Dikembe, you cannot even stand up.' It took a long time for me to walk.

Dikembe Mutombo

My decision leaving the Nuggets was based on the organization not saying they had the cap room to sign me.

Dikembe Mutombo

My good friend Yao Ming was the first big player in the NBA to come from China. He gave himself to the game and was successful. That inspired the NBA to invest more and do more for the game of basketball. We're building academies not just in China, but in India, Africa, Europe and South America as well.

Dikembe Mutombo

I'm so glad I didn't become a doctor, because I do more than any doctor can do. I am an administrator, a CEO, doctor, psychiatrist, an activist, a campaign funder. I think I did well.

Dikembe Mutombo

People wonder why I love Africa so much. I say this is where I was born and raised. My roots are in Africa; that's were I developed.

Dikembe Mutombo

It's not easy to teach a child how to win.

Dikembe Mutombo

When I go to China, people call me 'Uncle Mo' because they refer me as Yao Ming's uncle. I'm pleased to be his uncle as long as he listens to me!

Dikembe Mutombo

The NBA is becoming a global game.

Dikembe Mutombo

I cannot forget the place that I come from. The Congo is much in need.

Dikembe Mutombo

My mother taught us to sell food in the market so we could pay for school. I would get up at 4:30 A.M. and start selling bread and cheese before going to class. School cost $65. The average salary was $125 a year, and with 10 kids, how are you going to pay for that?

Dikembe Mutombo

My favorite memory is my five years with the Nuggets. From my first day to my last day is a great memory. There wasn't a year that I was a Nugget that I didn't think we succeeded.

Dikembe Mutombo

It's easy to be a spokesman and ambassador for a great organization like the NBA. I thank Commissioner David Stern for putting that trust in me to serve the NBA around the globe.

Dikembe Mutombo

I always felt that I had to leave a legacy on the African continent. As I was only the third player to come to the NBA from Africa, I felt I had to do my best to recruit more young Africans to come and play in the NBA - and also find a way to bring the NBA to Africa.

Dikembe Mutombo

When I was born, my dad and my mom gave me names, but in Africa, when your child is born, especially close family members can suggest names they want to add on. Maybe your grandmom and your grandpop have something to add to the name of the child.

Dikembe Mutombo