Manute Bol Salem Sportswear Caricature Tee

Manute Bol Caricature Classic Salem Sportswear T-Shirt

I was going through some of my old caricature art that I did for Salem Sportwear back in the 1980's and came across this classic of Manute Bol when he played for the Golden State Warriors. I believe that the design above was released in '88 or '89 and it certainly was a revised version of the original Manute Bol illustration that I had painted when he was with the Washington Bullets. During Manute's 3 year stint with the Bullets, he had teamed up with Muggsy Bogues. Muggsy was also a fan favorite and he just so happened to be the shortest player in the league standing at only 5'3". As you may know, Bol was one of the tallest players to ever play in the NBA. I believe that his height was listed in the media guides at 7 feet 7 inches! Having these two play together on the same court  served as quite the spectacle back in the day! I know that I must  have an original ink-washed illustration featuring both players for another Salem Shirt somewhere. If I locate it, I'll make sure to post it at some point. Here, I depicted Manute kneeling on the basketball court preparing to dunk the rock- after he had ripped the whole basketball rim, backboard and pole out from the floor. Playing center, Manute Bol would go on to become one of the elite shot blockers in all of NBA history. By the time Bol had wrapped up his career, he would have many more blocked shots than points scored. 

Manute Bol was born in Sudan,  the son of a very proud Dinka Tribal Elder. The name 'Manute' literally means 'special blessing' And that he was as Manute was very charitable with the large amount of money that he made playing professional basketball in America. Much of his charity would aid causes that supported his people back in his home country. Bol would make return trips to Sudan to visit the refugee camps. The people loved him dearly and would treat him like royalty. Also- interesting to note is that back in the 1990's Manute met with officials from the Pentagon, the Congress and the State Dept to warn the U.S. of the growing threat of Osama bin Laden. Unfortunately, Manute felt like he wasn't taken seriously. 

I was able to follow Manute's Career as he was only a couple of years older than myself. I did smile when I came across this old pellon of Manute- so I thought I would share:) Unfortunately he passed away in 2010 at the young age of 47. May he rest in peace.

Update: I continued reading and learning more about Manute after I had finished this short blog post. I learned that Manute is survived by 10 children. My thoughts are with them. One of Manute's sons who is named Bol Bol is currently a 6'3" seventh grader. I've also heard it reported that he is really closer to 6'5".  Anyway, I came across a YouTube video of Bol Bol at a Cross Roads Elite Basketball Camp and it looks like the young Bol really has some hoops skills. He may have a bright future playing in the NBA just as his dad did. I would really enjoy seeing the Bol legacy continue.