The Chicago Bulls were undoubtedly the most dominant franchise in the 1990s. The team won three consecutive titles from 1991-1993 and would go on to strengthen their roster by adding Dennis Rodman to the mix. Co-leading the team alongside Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen, Rodman played an integral part in helping clinch a three-peat. What is considered to be the best three years of The Worm’s career also happen to be the best years of his life. However, after being dropped by the Bulls in 1998, the defensive superstar bounced around from franchise to franchise for two years before being driven out of the league.
Advertisement
The Bulls suffered a shock when the Orlando Magic eliminated them in the 1995 Playoff. The likes of Shaquille O’Neal and Horace Grant would expose the Illinois side’s lack of defensive presence in the paint. As a result, Jerry Krause, upon the request of Phil Jackson, acquired Rodman from the San Antonio Spurs.
Due to their rivalry with the Detroit Pistons, Jackson, Jordan, and Pippen held a meeting with the 6-foot-7 Forward that would allow them to start with a clean slate. Clearly, the meeting was beneficial. Over the next three years, the All-Star trio of MJ, Pip, and Rodman dominated every team in the league.
Two years after being dropped by the Bulls, Dennis Rodman was out of the NBA
Rodman was always known to be an eccentric character. However, his indulgence in drugs, alcohol, parties, women, and gambling increased rapidly after joining the Chicago side. But, Rodman seemed to enjoy this. According to him, Chicago became his “safe place”.
In his time playing alongside Jordan and co., the undersized Power Forward averaged merely 5.2 points and 0.3 blocks, but would grab 15.3 rebounds per game. The Bulls benefitted massively from Dennis’ presence.
Not all franchises wanted to be associated with Dennis the Menace. His off-court antics would make teams repulsive of him. Hence, after being dropped by the Bulls, only the Los Angeles Lakers and the Dallas Mavericks offered the eventual Hall-Of-Famer a place in their roster. Following the 1999-2000 campaign, Rodman gathered no interest from any other team, leading him to retire.
Rodman shed light on how the other organizations ousted him from the league. Have a look at the excerpt from his book “I Should Be Dead By Now”.
“I guess once I left Chicago, I left my safe place, my home— where people really embraced me no matter what I did. And people in the league were like, “F**k Dennis now. He’s not with Chicago anymore. Michael, Scottie, and Phil Jackson are not there to protect him.” When the dust settled, out of all the great players on that Chicago team, I was the only player who didn’t get picked up.”
Rodman would go on to play basketball for numerous leagues across the country after being out of the NBA in 2000.
Rodman’s basketball ventures following the NBA
Dennis took a break from basketball in order to achieve his goal of being a film star. After a 3-year hiatus, the Bulls legend would reunite with basketball, playing for the Long Beach Jam of the newly-formed American Basketball Association.
After helping the Long Beach team to win the inaugural title, Rodman represented Mexico’s Fuerza Regia in 2004, before coming back to the ABA to represent Orange County Crush and Tijuana Dragons. Following a short stint for Torpan Pojat of Finland’s basketball league, British Basketball League’s Brighton Bears even tried an experiment deal by adding Rodman to their squad for one game. In 2013, Dennis even played an exhibition game in North Korea with the Harlem Globetrotters after Michael Jordan rejected dictator Kim Jong-un’s invite.
Clearly, Dennis Rodman has had quite the journey following his unfortunate exit from the NBA.
