Coming late to basketball, he nevertheless found stardom, retiring with the second-most blocked shots in league history. He devoted much of his life to humanitarian causes.

Dikembe Mutombo, the Hall of Fame center whose playful finger-wags after blocking shots — which he did 3,289 times in his career — has died at the age of 58 due to brain cancer, the NBA announced. Mutombo died surrounded by his family,

ATLANTA (AP) — Hall of Fame basketball player Dikembe Mutombo dies at 58 from brain cancer.

He was a defensive force on the court who changed the way the game of basketball is played. But more importantly, Dikembe truly changed the world and improved countless lives through his humanitarian work in Africa.

Hall of Famer Dikembe Mutombo died Monday from brain cancer. The Congolese American earned eight-time All-Star selections and was named the NBA's defensive player of the year four times during his pro career.

Basketball Hall of Famer Dikembe Mutombo, one of the best defensive players in NBA history and a longtime global ambassador for the game, died Monday from brain cancer, the league announced

LeBron James told the story of Mutombo fracturing his face — and even then he couldn't talk about Dikembe without a smile on his face.