A Quote by Dikembe Mutombo
After spending more than 17 years playing for the NBA, in the summertime, I always came back to community service and different basketball clinics.
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When I came back into show business in '88 after spending 20-odd years in the civil service, it wasn't planned.
I remember when I came into the NBA, eighteen years ago, there were maybe nine to twelve international players playing in the NBA. Today we've got more than 85, so that tells you how our game has grown at that level.
After I made it to the NBA, I said that I didn't want to be the last player from Africa. After my rookie year, I went to the league and talked about this, and they embraced my idea and started conducting basketball clinics in Africa, and that's when I knew I wouldn't be the last African.
A lot of times things get blown out of proportion in a negative light, especially in the NBA, ... But there are a lot of players in the NBA who really care about the community and want to use their basketball-playing ability for a good cause.
The natural thing in Africa is to start playing soccer at 8 or 9. You go outside and you play like kids play basketball here, and you grow a feel for the game. In Africa, the kids start playing basketball at 16 or 17 or 18, and when they get an opportunity to come here, they have been playing for only one or two years.
Summertime where guys played pickup, we got a thing in Philly called Summertime Rec. In that summertime you can't duck no smoke. You can't duck nobody in that basketball vibes.
Being from Flint, especially in the basketball community, is a big deal. Basketball in Flint, you're pretty much like a god there if you play college basketball or are lucky enough to make it to the NBA.
Kobe made an impact on basketball in a big way. He came in the League when he was 17 years old, but he was working on his game every day... The way he played, people all around the world loved the passion that he put in for basketball.
I wasn't drafted. I was just playing really good basketball, enjoying playing basketball with my national team and never really thought: 'I have to get to the NBA.'
I know people that was playing basketball better than me. If they were in the NBA, they could be All-Stars, those people. They just never had the opportunity to go play professional basketball in Europe.
I left my home when I was 13 years old, I was a professional at 17, and I've been playing basketball since.
I came here and actually fell in love with Charlotte and the Hornets. That's exactly what happened to me. I found a new way of motivation. Charlotte basically extended my career for the next seven years. I was thinking of retiring. I was 30 and played seven more years after that, just because basketball felt different here in Charlotte.
No More Games. No More Bombs. No More Walking. No More Fun. No More Swimming. 67. That is 17 years past 50. 17 more than I needed or wanted. Boring. I am always bitchy. No Fun — for anybody. 67. You are getting Greedy. Act your old age. Relax — This won't hurt
It's easier to go outside and play basketball. You can shoot around by yourself. Play pick-up. Whereas with baseball, no one likes putting a ball on a tee, hitting it, chasing it and putting it back on a tee. You need more than a few guys. So I was always in the neighborhood playing basketball with my friends.
I mean, I was always hoping to play in the NBA. Of course, when that thing happened, you're like, 'Finally, I did it, but the work starts now.' I didn't want to just be known as OK, I came to the NBA, and then in a few years, you're gone. First my goal was to be the best Slovenian player in the league. Of course, after that, your appetite goes up.
No one missed more basketball in the history of NBA than I did. I played 14 seasons, on the roster for 14 years, and I missed more than nine-and-a-half full seasons.
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