Dikembe Mutombo, the gravelly voiced center whose finger-wagging shot-blocking made him a Denver Nuggets legend and built a cult following among basketball fans worldwide, is undergoing treatment for a brain tumor, the NBA said in a statement Saturday on behalf of him and his family.
“He is receiving the best care possible from a collaborative team of specialists in Atlanta and is in great spirits as he begins treatment,” the statement said.
The 56-year-old Mutombo was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo before moving to the United States and playing college basketball at Georgetown University. He was drafted by the Denver Nuggets as the fourth pick in the 1991 draft. He later played with six NBA teams throughout his 18-year career and was an eight-time NBA All-Star.
He retired in 2009 and was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2015.
He added to his fame when he appeared in a Geico commercial that aired during the Super Bowl and ran for months after that. He also appeared in an ad for the security platform CHEQ.