Five NBA championships, two Defensive Player of the Year awards and two All-Star nominations: the name Dennis Rodman is one of the greatest and most colorful in basketball history, and yet his life has been repeatedly accompanied by scandals.
Twenty-nine years ago, a scene symbolized Rodman’s unpredictability occurred. On January 15, 1997 – in Germany it was already the 16th day of the month – he had a short-circuit reaction.
During a game in Minnesota, Rodman was chasing a rebound and lost his balance. While fighting for the ball, the then star of the Chicago Bulls hopped towards the photographers positioned on the sidelines and fell to the ground. A situation followed that apparently angered Rodman so much that he kicked the then 48-year-old cameraman Eugene Amos in the groin with a strong leg movement.
$200,000 settlement: Bulls defend Rodman
Amos was then taken out of the arena on a stretcher and spent a short time in the hospital. Rodman was suspended by the NBA for 11 games and fined $25,000. There was also a settlement for the victim of $200,000.
Nevertheless, Rodman, who became known for his tough style of play, was not aware of any guilt. He said the Los Angeles Times: “I know I hit him in the thigh. If you look at the video footage, you’ll see I hit him in the thigh. He was talking to me. I said, ‘I’m sorry I hit you.’ He said, ‘Get away from me.'”
“Suddenly he passed out,” Rodman explained at the time, accusing Amos of histrionic behavior: “He was taken away on a stretcher? That was a little dramatic for me. I’m sending him some roses… love, Dennis.”
Even though he received his punishment for the omission, the Chicago Bulls backed their star back then. Bulls professional Scottie Pippen claimed: “When you’re that close to the game, you have to be willing to get out of the way. This is the NBA. This is our playing field.”
When janitor Rodman stole 50 watches at the airport
However, the unsightly images were only a tiny chapter in Rodman’s career. With 13.1 rebounds per game, he went down in history as one of the best in this field. But at the same time, the most colorful figure in basketball history also became a pop culture phenomenon, a nightlife fixture and a true eccentric.
Dennis Rodman was born on May 13, 1961 in New Jersey and grew up as the son of a single mother after his father left the family when Rodman was just three years old. According to his own statements, Rodman had a difficult childhood and was said to have been thrown out of the house twice by his mother.
After Rodman graduated from high school, he worked as a night janitor at an airport in Dallas-Fort Worth. There he also caused the first big scandal of his life. Rodman stole 50 watches from a store, was caught on surveillance cameras and quickly arrested by police.
However, no charges were ever brought, especially since the police quickly found the stolen goods. Rodman had given all the watches away. “I was trying to please people… I just wanted people to like me,” he said of the incident in a previous interview.
Rodman: A detour to becoming an NBA star
Around this time, however, Rodman also experienced a growth spurt that was instrumental in his later sporting success. At 18, he shot up from just 1.80 meters to an NBA-ready height of 2.01 meters. This development led Rodman to try basketball again, which is how he landed in organized basketball for the first time and had a successful time in college.
The late starter didn’t end up in the NBA until the age of 25, after being selected 27th by the Detroit Pistons in the 1986 draft. With the Pistons, known at the time as the “Bad Boys,” Rodman first had to prove himself and therefore focused on the two factors that would make him famous: rebounding and defense.
“I worked on my defense every day for a couple of years. And suddenly I had perfected it to the point where I knew how players would react to something before they even did it,” Rodman told Fashion magazine in 2021 GQ.
“The completely different side of Dennis Rodman”
In 1989 and 1990, Rodman, now also known as “The Worm,” celebrated his first two NBA titles with Detroit, but just a few years later he had to go through a deep life crisis. After his divorce from his wife and the departure of trainer Chuck Daly, the then 31-year-old was discovered sleeping in his car with a loaded pistol lying next to him.
Rodman fought his way back to life, but described the moment as a “turning point” and locked himself at home for a long time. “I went from the gentle, humble, emotional guy to this whole other side of Dennis Rodman. When I came out of my house, the new Dennis emerged,” Rodman revealed GQ.
There was also development on the field. After Rodman moved to the San Antonio Spurs in 1993, his appearance also changed. Hair in the most colorful colors, numerous tattoos and piercings – a new Dennis Rodman was born.
A career between scandals and strange appearances
During his career, Rodman missed game analysis or entire training camps, often collecting penalties and suspensions. Nevertheless, the highlight of his career was still to come. In 1995, Rodman joined the Chicago Bulls. Between 1996 and 1998, alongside legend Michael Jordan, he celebrated the iconic “Threepeat” with three championship titles in a row.
The Bulls, led by successful coach Phil Jackson, knew that they had to keep Rodman on a long leash off the field and, among other things, hired a retired police officer to accompany Rodman.
And apparently for good reason: Even when he was active, “The Worm” threw wild sex and drug parties and had a brief affair with world star Madonna, whom he then accused of trying to get pregnant against his will.
There were also other stories such as the flash marriage to Baywatch star Carmen Electra, which only lasted ten days, roles in films and series and a legendary appearance in a wedding dress to market his book “Bad as I Wanna Be”.
Convictions for domestic violence and various driving under the influence formed further dark chapters in the controversial basketball player’s life. One of these trips led to a motorcycle accident in 2003 in which Rodman suffered a leg injury that is said to have prevented an NBA comeback after brief stints with the Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas Mavericks.
Between wrestling and North Korea: Rodman and the wild post-career years
After his career, Dennis Rodman’s wild escapades continued seamlessly. A wrestling match alongside Hulk Hogan, visits to North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un, whom he described as a “friend for life”, or campaign support for Donald Trump (2016) and rapper Kayne West (2020) were on the agenda.
After Rodman had struggled with major financial worries and years of alcohol addiction in the past – a result of his long time as a nightlife star – he says he thinks a lot about his life today and wants to make amends. Especially with his four children.
When he was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2011, he apologized for not being a better father. Son DJ Rodman followed his father in sports, but has not yet made the final leap into the NBA. Daughter Trinity, on the other hand, is a national soccer player for the USA and has been playing in the NWSL since 2021.
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