?I Don?t Give a F**k if I Play Here or Not?: Dennis Rodman Dismissed 13x NBA Champion Before ?Most Incredible 3 Years? of His Life

It was 1995, and the NBA was in the off-season. The Chicago Bulls were coming off their first playoff loss with Michael Jordan in years and they needed to strengthen their squad. The head coach of the Bulls, Phil Jackson learned that Dennis Rodman might be available. Therefore, he went to talk to him. And the Worm in characteristic fashion dismissed the 13-time NBA champion before what would turn out to be a historic three years of his life.

The season before Rodman joined the Bulls, they were having a tough time dealing with the young and new teams. But Jordan returned midway into the 1994-95 season and the Bulls made the playoffs. But they ran into an Orlando Magic team spearheaded by Shaquille O’Neal and Penny Hardaway, which didn’t end well for the Chicago team. The Bulls needed to make a move if they wanted to go back to winning ways.

Just then, a star was set to go on the market, which got the Bulls interested. And it was Dennis Rodman.

Dennis Rodman didn’t care if he played in Chicago or not

At the time, Rodman was with the San Antonio Spurs and his reputation had taken a hit. He had a tough relationship with coach Gregg Popovich and he was accused of not being a team player. His off-court antics also didn’t help his case, and the Spurs decided to trade him.

READ MORE: ?I Didn?t Do Anything Wrong?: Paying the Price of Being Himself, Dennis Rodman Was Infuriated in 1996 Controversy Leaving Bulls in Abyss

Several teams were interested, and one of them were the Bulls. So Jerry Krause, the general manager at the time, and Phil Jackson visited Rodman before making a trade. The Worm addressed this in his book ‘I Should Be Dead By Now: The Wild Life and Crazy Times of the NBA’s Greatest Rebounder of Modern Times.’

He wrote, “So when my agent and I met Phil Jackson at the home of Bulls general manager Jerry Krause, you might say I displayed a bit of an attitude when Phil finally got around to popping the question. ‘Dennis, we’ve decided we want to make a trade for you,’ Phil said. “Would you like to play here?”

“I don’t give a fuck if I play here or not,” I said. And that’s how I started the most incredible three years of my life,” Rodman added.

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Rodman’s move to the Chicago Bulls was highly successful as he won three titles in a row there. He became an integral part of the team and formed a Big 3 with Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen, which cemented his place among the greatest in history.