Dikembe Mutombo concerned about family in troubled Zaire

Jet, June 2, 1997

Atlanta Hawks center Dikembe Mutombo has had more on his mind than the NBA playoffs lately.

Although he was recently relieved of his playoff burden -- the Chicago Bulls defeated the Hawks in the second round -- he is still very concerned about family members who remain in war-torn Zaire.

"Everybody is still there -- my family, my wife's family -- and I am worried about them," he said right before the Hawks were eliminated by the Bulls. "I talk to them everyday ... Things are not going well back there. The whole city is under curfew now. They think the rebels are already there and you can get shot."

Zaire is embroiled in civil war, and Mutombo's hometown of Kinshasa, the capital, is in danger of falling to rebel forces.

Mutombo added that he prays for his family five times a day.

"Me and my wife both come from families of 10, so there are a lot of people close to us who are over there," he said in USA Today.

"It's tough thinking about what they have to go through day after day," he added. "I just pray that God will save them like he did when he sent Moses to save the children of Israel."