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The Forgotten Chaos
Inside Dennis Rodman’s bizarre 23-game stint with the Lakers
After a successful 1997–98 NBA season for the Chicago Bulls that ended in champaign, the team went through one of the most destructive rebuilds in NBA history. Many players left or retired, but one was not done playing basketball.
Forward Dennis Rodman and the Los Angeles Lakers is one of the strangest, most chaotic footnotes in modern NBA history and it happened during the lockout-shortened 1998–99 NBA season.
The Setup
The Chicago Bulls’ dynasty of the 1990s had come to an end. But the Lakers were led by a young Shaquille O’Neal and Kobe Bryant. The organization was desperately searching for a veteran missing piece for their defense in pursuit of an NBA championship.
Before Rodman got to the team, the Lakers were going through a rough time. Head coach Del Harris was fired and Kurt Rambis was named interim head coach. Los Angeles had traded away fan favorites like Eddie Jones and Elden Campbell for Glen Rice.
Rodman was 37 years old and in the midst of a highly publicized whirlwind marriage with actress Carmen Electra. The team signed him to a pro-rated veteran’s salary for the remainder of the season according to EBSCO. They thought they were all set to go.
