Manute Bol
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Manute Bol is a Sudanese-born basketball player and activist. Until the debut of Gheorghe Muresan (who was supposedly a few millimeters taller), Manute was undisputedly the tallest player ever to appear in the National Basketball Association.
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[edit] Height
Bol is believed to have been born on October 16, 1962 in either Turalie or Gogrial, Sudan. He is the son of a Dinka tribal chief, who gave him the name "Manute," which means "special blessing." Bol is 7'7" (2.31 m) tall, and 200 lb [1]. His paternal grandfather was said to have been 7'10" (2.39 m) tall, and he claims to have a younger sister who is 6'10" (2.08 m). Conversely, his father is said to be a modest 5' 10" (1.78 m) and his mother only 5' 7" (1.70 m).
[edit] Basketball career
Bol moved to the United States at age 18 after being recruited by representatives of Fairleigh Dickinson University. He later attended Cleveland State University despite not having a strong command of written English. Bol played one year of college basketball at the University of Bridgeport.
He was drafted by the San Diego Clippers in the 5th round of the 1983 NBA Draft, then in the 2nd round of 1985 Draft by the Washington Bullets. Due to his height and extremely long limbs, Bol was one of the league's most imposing defensive presences, blocking shots at a nearly unprecedented rate. He blocked 397 shots during the 1985-1986 season, a rookie record. He also holds the all time NBA record for most blocked shots per minute, (.176). However, his other basketball skills were very limited, and his rail-thin physique made it difficult for him to establish position against the league's physical centers and power forwards. The sight of the tall, gangly Bol spotting up for a three-pointer during blow-outs became a fan favorite. [citation needed] Off the court, Manute established a reputation as a practical joker; Charles Barkley, a frequent victim of his pranks, testified to Bol's sense of humor. [citation needed] He also developed a close friendship with teammate Chris Mullin.
Over the course of his career, Bol averaged 2.6 points, 4.2 rebounds, 0.3 assists and 3.3 blocks per game while only playing an average of 18.7 minutes per game. Bol is the only player in the history of the NBA to block over 300 shots in his first 2 seasons. He played in the NBA for ten years, from 1985-86 to 1994-95, spending 3 seasons with the Bullets, 3 with the Golden State Warriors, 3 with the Philadelphia 76ers and 1 with the three different teams (Miami Heat, Washington Bullets, Philadelphia 76ers). After the end of his NBA career, Bol played 22 games for the Florida Beach Dogs of the CBA during the 1995-96 season. He then played professionally in Italy and Qatar before rheumatism forced him to retire permanently.
[edit] Career after basketball
Bol was very active in charitable causes throughout his career. He frequently visited Sudanese refugee camps, where he was treated like royalty. In 2001, however, he was held against his will by the ruling Islamic government because of his support of the Dinka-led Christian rebels, the Sudan People's Liberation Army. The Sudanese government refused to grant him an exit visa. Through intervention by friends in the United States, including Sen. Joseph Lieberman, Bol was finally able to return to the United States.
He established the Ring True Foundation in order to continue fundraising for Sudanese refugees. He has given most of his fortune (an estimated $3.5 million) to their cause. In 2002, Fox TV agreed to broadcast the telephone number of his Ring True Foundation in exchange for Bol's agreement to appear on their Celebrity Boxing show. He scored a third-round victory over former football player William "The Refrigerator" Perry. Later that year, Bol signed a one-day contract with the Indianapolis Ice of the Central Hockey League to raise money for the Sudanese, and also had a brief stint as a horse jockey for similar reasons. His hockey publicity stunt, during which he never actually got on the ice, was ranked No. 92 overall in the book "Glow Pucks & 10-Cent Beer: The 101 Worst Ideas in Sports History" by author Greg Wyshynski. (Taylor Trade 2006)
On June 30, 2004 he was seriously injured when a taxi he was riding in flipped and crashed in Connecticut, killing the driver. It was later determined that the taxi driver had been driving under the influence. Bol was thrown from the taxi and suffered major injuries, the most severe of which were three broken vertebrae in his neck. However, after a grueling rehab and with support from several friends and former teammates, he is now able to walk without a cane. He appeared for a ceremonial tip-off at a Chicago Bulls game in April 2005.
More recently, Bol has been involved in the Sudan Freedom Walk, a three-week march from the United Nations building in New York to the U.S. capital in Washington, D.C.. The event was organized by Simon Deng, a former Sudanese swimming champion (currently a lifeguard at Coney Island) who is a longtime friend of Bol's. Deng, who was a slave for three years from the age of nine, is from another tribe in Southern Sudan. His Sudan Freedom Walk is especially aimed at finding a solution to the genocide in Darfur (western Sudan), but it also seeks to raise awareness of the modern day slavery and human rights abuses throughout Sudan. Though unable to participate in the bulk of the walking, Bol spoke in New York at the start of the Walk, and in Philadelphia at a rally organized by former hunger striker Nathan Kleinman.
Manute Bol currently lives in West Hartford, Connecticut.
[edit] Trivia
- At 15, the Dinka herdsman killed a marauding lion with his spear while it lay sleeping — a feat his agent noted during his contract negotiations.
- He chipped a tooth by getting it caught on the net when he tried to slam dunk for the first time.
- In 1987, the Washington Bullets drafted the five-foot-three (1.60 m) point guard Muggsy Bogues, pairing the tallest and shortest players in league history on the court for one season.
- In a game against the Orlando Magic, he blocked four consecutive shots within a single possession. [2]
- Bol is tied for the NBA record for the most blocked shots in one half (eleven) and in one quarter (eight, twice). [3]
- During his time in Egypt, Bol ran a basketball school in Cairo. One of his pupils was fellow Sudanese refugee and current Chicago Bulls player Luol Deng, the son of a former Sudanese cabinet minister. Deng's family eventually received political asylum in the United Kingdom. Luol later moved to the United States to further his basketball career, continuing a close relationship with Manute.
[edit] Notes
- ^ http://www.databasebasketball.com/players/playerpage.htm?ilkid=BOLMA01
- ^ Manute Bol: Beyond the Glory, FOX Sports Net (Originally aired April 17, 2005)
- ^ http://www.nba.com/history/records/regular_blockedshots.html
