The rise and fall of Dennis Rodman

As Michael Jordan revealed in the ESPN documentary, 'Dennis Rodman: For Better or Worse,' he didn't think his Chicago Bulls teammate, 'the Worm,' would reach his forties.

Jordan was sure: "In all honesty, playing with Dennis and the lifestyle he lived, I never thought he'd see 40 because he burned the candle at both ends." However, in 2021, the talented Bulls pivot turned 60. The 'Worm' is eternal.

Dennis Rodman is the best example of how to be a mix between an NBA player and a rockstar. Especially when people tend to glorify these kinds of players. Rodman was the epitome of that glorification and an ace on the court.

But where does the obsession with breaking the mold come from? How was he able to be as unique, even taking away the spotlight from the best NBA player in history? Well, let's see what the ESPN documentary has to say about that.

Dennis Rodman saw how his father abandoned his home when he was just 3 years old. He was raised by his mother and sisters who used to dress him in dresses, do his makeup and take him to the streets in heels.

Meanwhile, at school, as we can see in 'Dennis Rodman: For Better or Worse,' his classmates hit him daily and Rodman didn't try to stop them.

Everything changed during his teenage years when Dennis Rodman grew to be 6 ft 7 (2.01 m). His physique enlarged to supernatural measurements, the bullying was over, and a promising door opened: Basketball.

At 20 years, Dennis Rodman started playing in Oklahoma where he would meet his first real friend: Bryn Rich. That friendship would be key to the player's fate.

The Rich family practically adopted Dennis Rodman and hosted him in their home. In exchange, the big pivot worked for hours on their farm.

By that time, the incredible physique of Dennis Rodman was evident. Michael Jordan was amazed at how Rodman could go to practice or a game without sleeping and be able to "run like a gazelle."

Dennis Rodman was excessive in every aspect of his life, both personally and professionally. Limits were not his thing often landing on the audience whilst playing.

Rodman was chosen number 27 in the second draft round in 1986 by Detroit Pistons. There, he met coach Chuck Daly who in the documentary assures that Rodman "wasn't afraid of anything or anybody."

Daly became the father figure Rodman never had. They spent together special holidays like Christmas and Thanksgiving. Daly didn't drink alcohol and was very professional.

Between 1989 and 1990, Rodman won the title of Best Defense Player of the NBA and two rings with the Pistons. A year later, Chuck Daly left the team causing Rodman to fall into depression.

The departure of his professional dad, mixed with a battle against his ex-wife for the custody of his daughter, pushed the player to try to take away his life in February 1993. He was going to do it in a van with a rifle, but Rodman ended up falling asleep.

Although he didn't do it, Rodman confessed that the old him died that day. That same year, he signed with San Antonio Spurs and started the season rocking a bleached yellow Mohican inspired by Wesley Snipes in the film 'Demolition Man.'

Image: Warner Bros.

Dennis Rodman was becoming a rockstar. That only intensified when he started dating Madonna in 1994. Rodman loved the fame, and the fame loved Rodman.

In an interview, the basketball player revealed that he and Madonna had broken up when he refused to have a child with the Queen of Pop as she had asked him to.

Yes, Dennis Rodman had no problem breaking up with one of the most desired women in the world when she was at the peak of her career. The media monster was just starting to develop…

With his agent, Dwight Manley, Dennis Rodman embraced a radical change in his look. He started coloring his hair, painting his nails, and dressing up in women's clothes.

The cover of Sports Illustrated was only the icing on the cake. Rodman appeared wearing a corset, leather shorts, and a parrot. History of fashion.

Changing his image was not all, the change was followed by irreverent declarations about gay bars, steamy NBA locker rooms, relationships with transwomen, and even kissing RuPaul on live TV.

In the middle of all that style frenzy, Dennis Rodman outdid himself when he dressed as a bride to marry himself in the presentation of his biography 'Bad As I Wanna Be' (1996).

And it wasn't something random or crazy. It was all the work of Kevyn Aucoin, the makeup artist of artists like Madonna and Cher who was able to mix Rodman's tough masculinity with his most feminine side.

The book was a best-seller, and his fame didn't stop growing. To top it all off, Rodman signed for Chicago Bulls right when Michael Jordan came back from his terrible baseball hiatus.

The 'Worm' did a fantastic job in the Bulls of Jordan: he won three MVP rings and the eternal respect of the basketball world under the wings of Air Jordan.

What was missing in Rodman's career? The Hollywood call that came with the film 'Double Team' in 1997, starring Jean-Claude Van Damme.

That year, Rodman earned 10 million dollars outside the basketball court, three million more than what the Bulls were paying him. NBA's bad boy was smashing it.

During that time, police were almost every day knocking on Rodman's door because of neighbors' complaints. He was arrested several times for driving under the influence of alcohol, public outrage, and street fights. He couldn't stop.

But eventually, the audience got tired of his excesses. Rodman left the Bulls in 1998 and was in the Lakers and Mavericks before finally retiring from the NBA in 2000, without making much noise.

Still, in 2011, he won his spot in the Hall of Fame next to his two teammates: Pippen and Jordan.

Marrying the actress Carmen Electra in 1998 (they were married just 9 days) and changing his name to 'Orga**' were some of his last moves to get attention. But these controversies didn't stop him from disappearing from the media scene.

His income had become a lot less and he could no longer afford his excessive lifestyle. It's calculated that during his time in the NBA, Rodman earned 27 million dollars, but in the end, according to Celebrity Net Worth, Dennis Rodman only had a net worth of 500.000 dollars.

The need for income pushed him to accept a contract that consisted of rebranding the idea the Western world had of North Korea. Once his agent knew what North Korea was about, it was too late, and the contract had already been signed.

It turns out that Kim Jong-Un was a Bulls fan since he had studied in Switzerland in the '90s. He and Rodman became friends and the relationship between the American player and North Korea remains good to this day.

Now, Dennis Rodman belongs to a glorious '90s past that is full of wonderful memories and important figures like Pamela Anderson or Jason Priestley.

After several times in rehab, five biographies, and thousands of controversies, the 'Worm' has managed to reach 60 and his rebel spirit keeps wanting more.

Selected as one of the Best 75 Players in NBA History, Rodman will forever hold the title of the most revolutionary basketball player, inside and outside the court.