The NBA world was devastated by the legendary Dikembe Mutombo’s death on Monday morning. Everyone remembered Mutombo’s iconic finger-wag celebration, Mutumbo’s hysterical commercial featuring that finger-wag gesture, and some of the best moments of his playing career, including the underdog Denver Nuggets’ upset of the No. 1-seeded Seattle Supersonics in 1994.
An all-time legend in his own right, LeBron James was asked about his thoughts on Mutombo as the NBA mourned the passing of the larger-than-life giant. In a hilarious story, James recalled a time when Mutombo apparently broke his face trying to block a shot, forcing the then-Cleveland Cavalier to wear a protective mask for a little while.
Oh, and he said it coincidentally happened on James’ birthday. Oof.
James, of course, meant all of this in good fun while reminiscing about Mutombo’s tremendous impact on the global basketball community:
“He fractured my face on my birthday in Cleveland.” 😅🤕
LeBron shared his favorite memory of Dikembe Mutombo. pic.twitter.com/sRG9G2v1cc
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) September 30, 2024