Kobe Bryant is one of the greatest players of all time. Having crafted his game to the likeness of Michael Jordan, many saw Bryant as the closest mimic to MJ ever. So naturally, one would assume that Bryant saw MJ as the most athletic and gifted player in history.
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But surprisingly, that wasn’t the case. In fact, for Kobe, there was another Bulls star who was athletically better than even Jordan himself. The player was none other than Dennis Rodman.
In 2008, while Phil Jackson was coaching the Lakers, he claimed that Rodman was the most athletic player he ever coached. Phil made the claim while giving a speech at the University of North Dakota.
Kobe Bryant later agreed with his coach. NBCS Los Angeles in their report revealed that not only did Bryant agree with his coach but also explained why he also believed Rodman was athletically more gifted than Jordan.
Kobe Bryant claimed Dennis Rodman was better athletically than Michael Jordan
NBCS Los Angeles released a report in 2008 where Kobe supported Phil’s comments during the University of North Dakota convocation ceremony. Bryant claimed that Dennis was a freak of nature.
The Los Angeles Lakers legend pointed out that standing at 6ft 7″, Dennis was big but still ran like a deer. He was also one of the few people who could guard 1 to 5 positions with the same gusto.
Kobe also highlighted how Rodman had guarded Michael Jordan during his Detroit Pistons days and even managed to defend Shaquille O’Neal when he joined the Bulls.
Bryant: “I do not disagree with that at all. People obviously think of Jordan first, but as an athlete, Dennis was a freak of nature. In terms of his size, he ran like a deer, he could run all day, he could defend from the one position all the way up to the five. Look at one series when he was guarding Jordan when he was with Detroit, and fast forward to when he was with the Bulls and he was guarding Shaq. You don’t see athletes like that too often.”
Bryant and Rodman were teammates
Bryant and Rodman, like Jordan and Rodman, were also teammates. The two played together during the 1998-99 season. Rodman had just left Chicago after completing the team’s second three-peat.
He would end up playing only 23 games with the Lakers. Though a lot less impactful on the offense, he was still a prolific rebounder and averaged over 11 rebounds a game. The Lakers released him in the off-season after which The Worm played 12 more games for the Dallas Mavericks in the 1999-2000 season.
