” I gifted Phil Jackson a customized Harley Davidson because our cheap a** management wouldn’t pay him” Dennis Rodman takes a dig at the Bulls management
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Phil Jackson and Dennis Rodman
Dennis Rodman is known to be one of the most outrageous figures in the history of basketball. To many, he was considered an outcast of some sort for his behavioral patterns on and off the court. Rodman was the type of person who would fit in the character of a “rebel” skipping practices for parties, fooling around with women and all the “undesired” things for an athlete. But he was truly one of a kind in the defensive end of the floor.
Dennis Rodman had one of his first rings with the Chicago Bulls in a three-peat spanning in 1996, 1997, and 1998. Rodman was a heavyweight rebounder and worked way into the roster of the offensively heavily Michael Jordan-led Bulls team. The Worn as many would refer to him would go on to become one of the best defensive-oriented players the league has ever seen and he gives credits to Phil Jackson.
Dennis Rodman speaks about the Bulls’ relationship with Head Coach Phil Jackson
The legendary coach Phil Jackson who led the Chicago Bulls through a decade of basketball is revered as arguably the best coach in basketball history. He won three wings prior to the acquisition of Rodman. According to the Bulls roster, the “Zen Master” was beloved by all of his players but least respected by the front office of the franchise.
“Phil is just a cool dude. He’s one sports figure who’s interesting enough that I wouldn’t mind hanging out with for a while. If he wasn’t married, I would want to see what kind of guy he is, if he’s a party animal, if he’s a jungle man. He probably was in his youth, when he was playing basketball,” said Rodman. Jackson and the Worn had a great relationship. The champion head coach was patient with Rodman in finding a fitting role on the Bulls roster which otherwise would not have happened on various teams.
Dennis Rodman extends his respect towards Bulls Coach Phil Jackson
The NBA Hall of Famer won two Defensive Player of the Year Awards under the coaching of Phil Jackson. The Bulls head won the Coach of the Year award the very same year Rodman won his first title. Rodman felt that Jackson was not being treated like COY and thought of rubbing it in the face of the Bulls front office. He gifted his coach a customized luxury motorcycle. “Just before the start of the 1996-97 season, I showed my appreciation to Phil by presenting him with a custom Harley-Davidson.
“Even though he had just won his fourth championship for the Bulls, our cheap-a** management d**ked him around and treated him like a p***-boy, They wouldn’t offer him what he was worth, and he had to settle for a one-year contract for $2.5 million-good money, but way less than what someone like John Calipari, who had never coached in the NBA before, got from the New Jersey Nets. Phil could have told them to f**k off, and he would have gotten hired somewhere for the major bucks. But he stayed in Chicago, and that meant Michael Jordan stayed, and I stayed, and another championship is within our grasp.”
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