Michael Jordan's ex-wife Juanita Vanoy honors Dikembe Mutombo with touching IG tribute following his passing
The tributes for NBA legend Dikembe Mutombo have been pouring in, including one from Michael Jordan's ex-wife Juanita Vanoy. Mutombo died on Monday due to brain cancer at the age of 58. Since then, several tributes have been posted in his honor including from the franchises he played for.
While teams like the Atlanta Hawks, Denver Nuggets and Houston Rockets included messages for the late legend, Michael Jordan's ex-wife opted for a simple tribute.
She shared a monochrome photo of Mutombo on her Instagram Story along with the abbreviated "RIP."
Dikembe Mutombo played 18 seasons in the NBA. He was drafted fourth overall by the Denver Nuggets in the 1991 draft and played until the 2008-09 season. He finished his career with the Houston Rockets.
He also had played for the Atlanta Hawks, Philadelphia 76ers, the now-defunct New Jersey Nets and the New York Knicks.
During his playing days, he established himself as one of the best paint protectors. He averaged 2.8 blocks per game in his career and was named Defensive Player of the Year four times.
Mutombo led the NBA in blocks per game from 1993-1996. During those three seasons, he averaged 4.2 blocks. He popularized the finger wag as a way of taunting opponents after rejecting their shots. Mutombo ranks second in all-time blocks with 3,289, only behind Hakeem Olajuwon (3,830).
Mutombo was also an eight-time All-Star and his No. 55 jersey was retired by the Hawks and the Nuggets.
Aside from Michael Jordan's ex-wife, Vanessa Bryant also shared a story remembering Dikembe Mutombo
Vanessa Bryant, the wife of Kobe Bryant, also took time to remember Dikembe Mutombo after news of his passing became public. Just like Michael Jordan's ex-wife Juanita Vanoy, Vanessa took to her Instagram Stories.
Vanessa reposted a clip of her late husband telling the story of how their daughter Natalia met Mutombo for the first time. The clip was originally posted by the IG page 'thebookofKobe.'
In the clip, Kobe Bryant told the media that Natalia met Mutombo during an All-Star weekend event.
He shared how he brought his daughter to meet him. As he was introducing them, Mutombo reached out to shake Natalia's hand but instead of doing the same, Natalia did Mutombo's famous finger wag on him which made the two NBA legends laugh.
