“I would rather he get all this out of his system now” – Michael Jordan’s reaction when Dennis Rodman headbutted a referee in New Jersey originally appeared on Basketball Network.
The Chicago Bulls‘ acquisition of Dennis Rodman via trade ahead of the 1995-96 season was deemed a risky move. The former Detroit Pistons Bad Boy two-season stint with the San Antonio Spurs was drenched in controversy. He was slapped with multiple ejections, did not see eye-to-eye with the coaching staff and his relationship with pop star Madonna overshadowed the team’s mission.
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The Bulls front office looked beyond his wacky persona and zeroed in on his on-court contributions. Chicago needed a terrific rebounder and defender. The 34-year-old Rodman was still one of the best power forwards that fit that description.
True colors
Dennis struggled with calf problems in the first months of the season, but soon, he got the ball rolling. He chucked in a couple of 20 rebound games and showed a deep understanding of the triangle offense.
It seemed that Phil Jackson had The Worm under his spell up until March 16, 1996, when Rodman headbutted referee Ted Bernhardt during a game in New Jersey. The power forward was suspended for six games without pay and fined $20,000.
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“They can suspend me and make an example out of Dennis Rodman, I don’t care,” Rodman said after the game. “If I butted him, I butted him. So suspend me, David Stern. Suspend me, Rod Thorn. You guys are so big, suspend me.”
Michael Jordan, who had just returned from retirement and was hungry for his fourth NBA championship, saw Rodman’s antics as distractions from the team’s ultimate objective. Jordan also preferred to release all the negative energy inside him so he would be in the proper headspace come playoff time.
“We’re trying to progress as a team and he kind of let it go by the waysides,” Jordan said, via the Los Angeles Times. “A lot of what you see in Dennis is his image and persona. He has continued to feed off that and that’s very dangerous to this team’s success.”
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“I would rather he get all this [stuff] out of his system now so when the playoffs come, we can focus on the game of basketball and we can count on him being in every game,” MJ highlighted.
The real MVP?
True enough, Rodman was all business in the 1996 NBA Playoffs, especially in the NBA Finals against the Seattle Supersonics. In Game 2, he had 20 rebounds, including 11 offensive rebounds — tying Elvin Hayes for the most in NBA Finals history. In Game 6, Dennis scored five points in the Bulls’ 12-2 run, which sealed the series for his team.
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It was a performance of a lifetime. While Jordan was the Bulls’ best player, the Sonics claimed it was Rodman who gave them the most trouble in the series. Some claim he should’ve been crowned NBA Finals MVP.
“Michael wasn’t the reason. He didn’t beat us in the championship. He did not beat us; we was on his a*s. Dennis Rodman is the one who beat us,” Shawn Kemp revealed. “We had no answer for his a—s, man. Every time that they needed a second shot, something special, extra rebound, or tip-in, this mother—er was flying and winking and kissing and frustrating everybody on the team. Dennis is not even like that; he just do that s***. He had my team just flustered.”
Rodman went on to help the Bulls win two more chips, but not without making the headlines for his rowdy behavior. The team fully embraced the power forward — his rebounding prowess, his defensive intensity, the craziness and the unpredictability.
All Rodman needed was a team that understood and accepted him.
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It was in Chicago that he found a new home.
This story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jul 17, 2025, where it first appeared.