“I Could Have Taken That as an Insult”: When 6ft 8″ Dennis Rodman Ignored Michael Jordan’s Subtle Dig

The 90s Chicago Bulls are widely considered to be one of the greatest basketball dynasties of all time. A team that won six NBA Championships and featured some legendary players. Chief among them is Michael Jordan.

Jordan was the heart and soul of Chicago, their leader and perhaps the greatest player to ever the Bulls’ threads. However, he wasn’t a one-man show. During his time in the Windy City, MJ had his fair share of help.

One of those helping hands was Dennis Rodman. The Worm joined the Bulls in 1995, and it is safe to say that his relationship with Jordan had a rough start. After all, the first thing he had to do was ignore a subtle diss His Airness through his way about his rebounding.

Michael Jordan once subtly insulted Dennis Rodman and his rebounding

In 1995, following Michael Jordan’s two-year hiatus from the world of basketball, the Chicago Bulls decided some reinforcements were necessary. So, who did they turn to? Well, none other than one of the greatest defenders of all time, Dennis Rodman.

The Worm was a welcome addition to the team. But, in true MJ fashion, His Airness needed to get a dig in on his new teammate. So, he did what most 32-year-old competitive athletes would do; he took a shot at Rodman’s rebounding.

Specifically, he was quoted saying he thought Dennis would only need to average 10-11 rebounds for the team to succeed. A quote that the five-time NBA Champion could have taken as an insult. After all, as stated in his book Bad As I Wanna Be, 10-11 rebounds are what he grabs in a good half.

“Michael was quoted as saying he thought I could average 10 or 11 rebounds on this team. I guess I could have taken that as an insult—10 or 11 rebounds is a good half for me— but I knew what he meant. He meant that 1 wouldn’t have to get more than 10 or 11 a game to make a difference on this team. He wouldn’t come out and say I could average 17 or 18 a game—or that I needed to average that many— because that would have put unnecessary pressure on me. If I was a guy who might feel pressure, which I’m not.”

Whether it was a subtle dig or an underhanded compliment, we may never know. But, one thing is for certain, during his time in Chicago, Rodman was a handful for both the Bulls and Michael.

Dennis Rodman was not an easy superstar to deal with for MJ and the Bulls

Dennis Rodman definitely was the bigger man when he decided to not take Michael Jordan’s subtle dig about his rebounds to heart. But, he compensated for that by being quite the pain for both Mike and the Bulls to deal with it. Especially when he went on his unscheduled Las Vegas retreats.

To be fair, the trips were so infamous, that they are now set to be made into a movie. That being said, it’s highly unlikely Jordan has fond memories of the same.