Dikembe Mutombo was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame last year. He famously spent time all around the NBA with the Atlanta Hawks, Philadelphia 76ers, New Jersey Nets and Houston Rockets. But he spent the first five seasons of his career with the Nuggets after they drafted him fourth overall in 1991. Mutombo spent the most time in his NBA career with Denver.
The Denver Nuggets decided to retire Dikembe Mutombo’s No. 55 and wear some retro jerseys to celebrate the ceremony. They raised his jersey to the Pepsi Center rafters before their home opener on Saturday night against the Portland Trail Blazers. But Nuggets fans and residents will be able to celebrate the career of the NBA’s second all-time leading shot-blocker on ‘Dikembe Mutombo Day’ for years to come.
The state of Colorado officially named October 29th ‘Dikembe Mutombo Day’.
October 29, 2016 will, forever after, officially be Dikembe Mutombo Day in the state of Colorado! #Nuggets #MtMutombo pic.twitter.com/lxd2NyQTXe
— Denver Nuggets (@nuggets) October 28, 2016
On top of getting his own day, Dikembe officially had his jersey retired by the team. You can watch the full ceremony below. The Nuggets join the Hawks as the second team to retire Mutombo’s jersey.
As a member of the Nuggets, he played more games (391) with Denver than with any other team, averaging 12.9 points, 12.3 rebounds, and 3.8 blocks. He made three All-Star games, won a Defensive Player of the Year award, and also helped lead one of the greatest upsets in NBA playoffs history.
