He may have made it to the NBA a decade ago, but Bismack Biyombo's heart never left home. Biyombo hails from the Democratic Republic of Congo, a nation rich in natural resources like cobalt and copper, but still plagued by extreme poverty. "I've seen so much suffering from our people," says Biyombo, a 6 ft. 8 in. center who has played in Charlotte, Toronto and Orlando, and was a free agent going into the 2021–2022 season. "Every day, you go home, you go back in your room, you're by yourself, crying. You're trying to find an explanation to certain things you don’t understand. Why? Why? Why? Then it gets to the point where, instead of the why, why, why, it's time to take the action." Biyombo, 29, is doing just that. He has donated his own money and raised funds through the Bismack Biyombo Foundation to build schools and sports facilities, provide scholarships and improve health care in Congo. Biyombo says he and his foundation have given scholarships to more than 5,000 Congolese students. "This has become my lifetime mission," he says. "I'll be willing to keep pushing until I have nothing left in the tank for my people." Photograph by Mary Beth Koeth for TIME

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Photo Editor Whitney Hollington Matewe