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Near the end of Game Two of the 1996 Eastern Conference Finals between the Orlando Magic and the Chicago Bulls, TNT's Verne Lundquist had a funny remark about Dennis Rodman and his tell-all book at the time, Bad As I Wanna Be.
While praising Rodman's effort on the court, Lundquist quipped that he wasn't sure what it says about America that Rodman's book was #1 on the New York Times bestsellers list.
The barb made me laugh and think about Rodman at the time of the 1996 NBA Playoffs. Playing his best ball of the playoffs, Rodman was more than a basketball player, rather a pop culture icon. At the end of Game Two, Rodman gave his jersey to Brian Knobbs, one half of wrestling's "The Nasty Boys." Lundquist commented on this interaction, clearly not knowing who Knobbs was, seeming weird out by the wrestler's appearance.
While praising Rodman's effort on the court, Lundquist quipped that he wasn't sure what it says about America that Rodman's book was #1 on the New York Times bestsellers list.
The barb made me laugh and think about Rodman at the time of the 1996 NBA Playoffs. Playing his best ball of the playoffs, Rodman was more than a basketball player, rather a pop culture icon. At the end of Game Two, Rodman gave his jersey to Brian Knobbs, one half of wrestling's "The Nasty Boys." Lundquist commented on this interaction, clearly not knowing who Knobbs was, seeming weird out by the wrestler's appearance.
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It was clear that Rodman was the Bad Boy's Bad Boy. While eighth grade me fancied myself a bad boy, I was not, even when I tried to get my hand on Rodman's memoir.
Interestingly enough, one of my buddies had the book and let me see it in eighth grade. I ended up reading a chapter and putting the book down, finding it too gossipy for my 13-year-old brain.
While I was all about what Rodman was doing on the court for the Bulls, I could care less about all the drama off of it, including dressing up as a bride and marrying himself during a book signing in New York City during the 1996 NBA playoffs and later getting involved with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) during the 1998 NBA Finals.
As long as Rodman was dominating on the glass, and the Bulls were winning, I was all good with the sideshow that came with The Worm, just as long as it didn't involve any criminal behavior.
Sure, I owned a Rodman Bulls' jersey and enjoyed collecting the McDonald's cups where his hair color changed based on the temperature of the beverage, but at the end of the day I was all about the basketball being played.
At this point Rodman was at his finest for the Bulls, and life was good with Chicago up 2-0 on the Orlando Magic. That's all that mattered to me, even as the Bulls were pop culture icons.
For those interested, I have found someone who audio recorded Rodman's book on YouTube (thank you SupaFly is 187). As an aside, two years later, a Sunday night TV movie based on the book came out. I remember watching it and laughing with some of my friends the next day in high school about how corny and cheap the movie looked, especially the basketball scenes.
For those inclined, make the jump to listen to Rodman's Bad As I Wanna Be from 1996, a great year when I graduated elementary school, the Bulls won their fourth championship of the 1990s, and most importantly, one of the most important books of the 20th century was written.
While I was all about what Rodman was doing on the court for the Bulls, I could care less about all the drama off of it, including dressing up as a bride and marrying himself during a book signing in New York City during the 1996 NBA playoffs and later getting involved with World Championship Wrestling (WCW) during the 1998 NBA Finals.
As long as Rodman was dominating on the glass, and the Bulls were winning, I was all good with the sideshow that came with The Worm, just as long as it didn't involve any criminal behavior.
Sure, I owned a Rodman Bulls' jersey and enjoyed collecting the McDonald's cups where his hair color changed based on the temperature of the beverage, but at the end of the day I was all about the basketball being played.
At this point Rodman was at his finest for the Bulls, and life was good with Chicago up 2-0 on the Orlando Magic. That's all that mattered to me, even as the Bulls were pop culture icons.
For those interested, I have found someone who audio recorded Rodman's book on YouTube (thank you SupaFly is 187). As an aside, two years later, a Sunday night TV movie based on the book came out. I remember watching it and laughing with some of my friends the next day in high school about how corny and cheap the movie looked, especially the basketball scenes.
For those inclined, make the jump to listen to Rodman's Bad As I Wanna Be from 1996, a great year when I graduated elementary school, the Bulls won their fourth championship of the 1990s, and most importantly, one of the most important books of the 20th century was written.
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