Manute Bol, an electrifying center from the Sudan who came to the United States without speaking any English, died at the University of Virginia Medical Center from complications stemming from a skin condition and kidney failure, the Washington Post reported. Bol was 47.
Manute Bol, 7 foot 7 inches tall, was one of the two tallest players in NBA history. Despite averaging under twenty minutes a game, Bol averaged 3.3 blocks an outing. He is the only NBA player to have recorded more blocked shots than shots scored.
Bol grew up in Sudan, and did not touch a basketball until he was a teenager. Before playing professional basketball, he was herding cattle in his home country.
After playing 10 seasons in the NBA, he engaged in a number of charity efforts to assist his home country, Sudan. The lanky star famously fought a charity boxing match with Chicago football lineman William "Refrigerator" Perry, and also worked with the aid group Sudan Sunrise.