The Atlanta Hawks are proving that Basketball Hall of Famer Dikembe Mutombo a special honor on Monday with a series of impressive tributes. New court decor featuring Mutombo’s silhouette, featuring his famous finger gesture, will be added to the State Farm Arena sidelines for the game against the Dallas Mavericks. This coincides with a special pitch coordinated with Atlanta’s blue and white City Edition uniforms.
Special honors for a special player
Hawks players will wear special pre-game shooting shirts that also feature Mutombo’s finger gesture. Every time a Hawks player scores a block, the center’s iconic “No, No, No” will echo throughout the arena. “The Mutombo family would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to Tony Ressler, Jami Gertz, Grant Hill, Steve Koonin and the entire Atlanta Hawks organization,” the Mutombo family said in a press release. “Your honor of Dikembe’s incredible basketball career with the Hawks and his humanitarian work both in Atlanta and around the world means so much to us. Dikembe had a special connection to the Hawks and his loyal fans.”
Video shows strong influence of Mutombo
A video celebrating Mutombo’s “profound influence both on and off the pitch throughout his illustrious career” will be shown at half-time. The Mutombo family will also be honored during the event. Mutombo, who died of a brain tumor in September at the age of 58, played a total of 343 games for the franchise from 1996 to 2001.
He was acquired in a trade from the Philadelphia 76ers during the 2000-01 season. He is the franchise record holder for blocks per game and ranks third in total blocks. His 3,289 career blocks are the second most in NBA history. The Hawks retired his number 55 jersey in 2015. “I never thought my jersey would be retired,” Mutombo told reporters at the time. “My name will remain forever.”
