Though it's customary for NBA players to capitalize on their salaries during their time in the league, Dennis Rodman defied that convention. While one might expect athletes to prioritize saving for their post-retirement years, this logic didn't apply to "The Worm," who not only admitted he hated but also took a trip to Las Vegas with the deliberate intention of losing it.
Rodman's Vegas trip
Rodman's psychological intricacies often left others puzzled. This was reflected in a 1993 Sports Illustrated article, where Rick Telander detailed a scene in which no one knew Dennis' whereabouts.
After reports surfaced that he had been spotted in Sin City, everyone assumed that he might've gone to test his luck in the casinos. However, Rodman's intentions were quite different. Instead, the then-Chicago Bulls forward deliberately went there to lose all the money he had brought on that trip.
"The 32-year-old basketball star, who once worked the night shift as a janitor at the Dallas-Fort Worth Airport, has made a symbolic act of penance, a cleansing of spirit that he feels will allow him to recapture, however fleetingly, the naivetè and the freedom of a former self that haunts him like a ghost," Telander wrote . "In a matter of days, he has lost all he came with, close to $35,000, which is what he wanted to do."
The legendary forward, meanwhile, offered a simple explanation for his actions. "I hate money, " he said. "I went to Las Vegas to lose. So I could feel normal."
For Rodman, money didn't matter at all
Despite his eccentric ways of losing money, the two-time All-Star also had a generous side when spending his hard-earned money. Coming from humble beginnings to, at that point, earning millions in the NBA, he felt a strong sense of obligation to give back to the community and help those in need.
As Dennis exited a restaurant in Chicago, a pregnant and homeless lady woman with two children approached him, asking for a few bucks. Rather than simply offering some money, Rodman went the extra mile to assist her.
"I had $250 in my pocket, and I gave it all to her," Rodman said . "If I had $1,000, I would have given her that, too. There are a lot of people out there that are more worthy of this money. People without houses. People living on the street. I was lucky to come upon this, what I have now."
Having earned over $27 million solely in salaries during his playing days, Dennis consistently offered to help people around him. However, amid all this, he occasionally had episodes of throwing away money in peculiar ways, such as his trip to Las Vegas.
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