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Shortly after purchasing a majority stake in the Dallas Mavericks in January of 2000, Mark Cuban successfully recruited then-38-year-old NBA legend Dennis Rodman to Dallas. Rodman’s stint with the Mavs only lasted 12 games. However, according to Cuban, he still taught him invaluable lessons about public relations and marketing.
During a recent appearance on the “All The Smoke” podcast, Cuban recounted his experiences with Rodman, including the time “The Worm” stayed at his house. The $6.2 billion-worth Cuban then spoke about how he learned more about PR and marketing from Rodman than he did in business school:
“Let me just tell you, I learned more from Dennis Rodman about PR and marketing than I learned in any MBA class, anything I’ve ever done. The man was a master of marketing,” Cuban said.
The Mavs owner recalled going out in public with Rodman and observing how he dealt with his hordes of fans. According to Cuban, the NBA legend was always thinking of innovative ways to keep fans entertained:
“We’d go someplace and there’d just be masses of people that were just excited to see him, and he’d be like, ‘Okay, you’ve just got to keep on refreshing and coming up with new stuff and letting people know you’re going to be there,’” Cuban said.
“So, him and Paris Hilton are my two marketing and PR gurus. D-Rod was like a machine. He knew exactly what he was doing.”
(52:05 mark below)
During Rodman’s brief stint with Dallas, the Mavs went just 3-9. Meanwhile, he received six technical fouls, two ejections and a one-game suspension over a 13-game span.
Dallas waived Rodman after just 29 days, as his antics ultimately proved too much for the Mavs to deal with. However, Rodman still made a lasting impact on Cuban and helped prepare him for what most consider a very successful Mavs ownership tenure.
Dennis Rodman said he never planned to be a Maverick
Dennis Rodman may not have lasted long with Dallas. However, according to the NBA legend, he never planned to sign with the Mavericks in the first place.
During an interview with VladTV earlier this year, Rodman said that Mark Cuban aggressively persuaded him to join the Mavs. However, at the time, he was content spending his time partying:
“He said, ‘I want you to be a Maverick,’” Rodman said.
“He said, ‘I want you to sign with the team,’ and I said, ‘You do? Alright, great.’ He came and got me and literally took me to Dallas the next day. I didn't ask for him to do that s**t. I was happy at the time just partying my a** off.”
(1:12 mark below)
However, Rodman still wasn’t happy after promptly getting waived by Dallas, and felt that he was “blackballed” by the league for his antics:
“I got used again,” Rodman told the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal.
“It’s like being blackballed. I’ve done so much for this league and people want to see me play. ... I don’t get it.”
Rodman never played another NBA game. Nonetheless, the five-time NBA champion is still regarded as one of the greatest rebounders and defenders in league history.
