Dennis Rodman’s recent interview on Vlad TV recently reignited many controversies from the Worm’s colorful life and NBA career.
DJ Vlad had asked Rodman to compare playing with Kobe Bryant and Shaquille O’Neal on the Lakers to playing with Michael Jordan on the Bulls. However, instead of drawing parallels between the two teams, Rodman ended up bringing up the time he dated Jeanie Buss and how his relationship with the owner’s daughter made Kobe and Shaq envious of him.
“It was hard because I knew the fact that Kobe and Shaq wouldn’t like me. I know because I saw Jerry Buss; he loved me. I used to date his daughter. So I was dating his daughter at that time. We dated for six months, and I know Kobe and Shaq didn’t like me because a whole attention became Dennis,” Rodman said via Vlad TV.
“It should be from them to me quickly, and when you can see it in the stands, and you can see it in the city and stuff like billboards, so things like that,” Dennis continued. “I’m like, ‘I’m not trying to do anything.’ They rarely would talk to me, even in games. I think that’s the main reason why they cut me. They went to the upper hand, and they didn’t want me anymore.”
Following the Bulls’ Last Dance, Rodman found himself following his Chicago head coach to Los Angeles during the lockout-shortened 1999 season. However, Dennis’ Lakers stint lasted only 23 games, with him averaging 2.1 points and 11.2 rebounds per game.
Rodman said that Kobe and Shaq were envious of him because the Lakers ‘catered’ to him so much on and off the court. Because of that, The Worm added that the Lakers’ duo couldn’t stand having him on the team, so they got rid of him after that season.
In the same interview, Rodman revealed that Dr. Buss’ daughter and current Lakers owner, Jeanie Buss invited him for drinks at the Ritz Carlton, and the meeting led to a six-month relationship between the two.
While she was successful as a sports executive, she also had personal desires. When she was 32, Jeanie posed for Playboy Magazine to realize a personal goal. Dr. Buss famously reacted to her daughter’s appearance in the men’s magazine by saying it was the only issue of the magazine that he’s never read. According to Rodman, he first met Jeanie because of Playboy, although he didn’t go into details.
