Dennis Rodman Might Actually Be the Greatest Rebounder in NBA History

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Dennis Rodman Might Actually Be the Greatest Rebounder in NBA History



by Joe Kozlowskion

August 2, 2020



When you hear the name Dennis Rodman, plenty of extracurricular activities come to mind. Many will remember the Worm’s constantly changing hair color and appearance in a wedding dress; others will think of his modern relationship with Kim Jong Un. During his time in the association, though, Rodman also stood head and shoulders above the other players in one specific field: rebounding.


While it’s easy to write Rodman off as a colorful character who happened to be in the right place (Chicago) at the right time (during the height of Michael Jordan’s reign), he was more than than that. In fact, the forward might actually be the greatest rebounder in NBA history.


Dennis Rodman’s unlikely road to the pros


Sports ReUp
@SportsReUp
Dennis Rodman's background story is WILD
5'6" HS freshman
Janitor at Dallas Fort Worth Airport
Grew to 6'7" at age 20, enrolled in college but flunked out
Transferred to SE Oklahoma State - averaged 25.7ppg/15.6reb
Drafted by the Pistons at the age of 25!
#LastDance



Once he made it to the NBA, Dennis Rodman established himself as a key contributor to some quality teams. During his youth, however, he didn’t seem cut out for sports.

As Bruce Newman explained in a Sports Illustrated article, Rodman was deemed too small to make his high school’s football team. While he did land a spot on the basketball team, but didn’t have much success. “I couldn’t even make a layup right,” Rodman explained; he spent half a season warming the bench before calling it quits.

Without an athletic future on his horizon, Rodman began working a series of odd jobs. He spent some time as a janitor in the Dallas-Worth Airport but ran into issues after stealing watches out of a store after hours. Seemingly out of nowhere, though, everything changed.

Thanks to a sudden growth spurt, Rodman grew to 6 feet, 7 inches tall; that inspired him to take another shot at basketball. He enrolled at Cooke County Junior College, but only lasted one semester. The forward then tried his luck at Southeastern Oklahoma State, where he developed into a star.


Building an NBA career around defense and rebounding



As you likely know, Southeastern Oklahoma State isn’t exactly a big-time basketball program. Dennis Rodman, however, still showed enough talent there to earn a shot at the pros.

After Rodman’s strong showing at the Portsmouth Invitational Tournament, the Detroit Pistons selected him with the 27th overall pick of the 1986 NBA draft. While he rarely started during his first few seasons in the Motor City, his tough defense, aggressive rebounding, and physical play was a perfect fit with the Bad Boys.

Rodman helped the Pistons claim two consecutive NBA titles but ultimately demanded a trade and landed with the San Antonio Spurs. After a brief stint in Texas, he moved again, this time to the Chicago Bulls. That trade would change the course of NBA history.

In the Windy City, the forward proved to be the perfect complimentary player. Michael Jordan obviously ran the show, and Scottie Pippen was a capable secondary option; Rodman did the dirty work, pulling down rebounds and providing a physical presence down low.

The Worm, of course, won three titles in Chicago before seeing out his career with the Mavericks and Lakers. In total, he played 911 games in the association, averaging 7.3 points, 13.1 rebounds, and 1.8 assist per outing.


Dennis Rodman has a case to be the greatest rebounder in NBA history



When you look at basketball’s all-time rebound leaders, Dennis Rodman isn’t even in the top 20. Despite that reality, the forward may still have a case as the NBA’s greatest rebounder.

During his time in the association, Rodman led the league in rebounding for seven-straight seasons; no other player in history has accomplished that feat. Those campaigns also came with the Pistons, Spurs, and Bulls, highlighting that individual skill, rather than a systemic advantage, gave Rodman the edge.

It’s also worth noting that the Worm was comparatively small by basketball standards. With all due respect to the likes Wilt Chamberlain and Shaquille O’Neal, someone as that tall and physically dominant should be pulling down rebounds with relative ease. As we saw during The Last Dance, Rodman elevated rebounding to an art form, studying individual player’s shots, reading the rotation of the ball, and knowing where the rebound would land.

Both on and off the basketball court, Dennis Rodman wasn’t everyone’s cup of tea. No one, however, can argue with his rebounding prowess.


bob
MY NOTE:  "Best rebounder inch-for-inch, pound-for-pound in NBA History"?  Almost certainly, but I don't think you should just ignore Wilt and Russ and Shaq's numbers just because they're bigger.  Just because Dirk was the first stretch 5 doesn't mean that Ray Allen's shooting (or any other hot shooting guard/wing from the '80s and '90s) is worth less. This is why I abhor, and avoid, intergenerational comparisons. You compete against whom your competition was at the time. Life isn't an NBA 2K game.


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His ESPN 30 for 30 goes into all this.  Much better to watch that than to read this cross generational snoozer.  

With all greats in any endeavor, they all have at least one thing in common that separates them from everyone else.  

I can't remember where I heard this but a reporter asked Rodman one time how was he able to get all those rebounds when those around him don't come anywhere close...something like that.  

His response was the he watched a lot of game film and from watching the location, trajectory and speed of the ball as it left any players hands, he knew within a half-second of where the ball was going to hit the rim if it was a miss, how hard it would hit the rim and bounce off and finally where the ball was going to "land" (somewhere in the 7 ft to 10 ft plane).  He said after that, it was easy to know where I needed to be to get the rebound, mostly uncontested.  Everyone else was in the wrong place except him.    

This stuck with me because I had heard this and seen this before in my life.  Back when I wore a younger man's clothes, my favorite gym/health club sport was racquetball.  It is a ridiculously fast-paced game played at lightening speed and accuracy.  I went to and participated in many state tournaments and actually won one.  But I'd watch the Open players and figured out very quickly they operated on a different plane.

I asked this one player in particular because I noticed something different about his play vs. the others.  His anticipation was impeccable.  Almost as if he was cheating or like he knew something all the others had missed.  I asked, "You know where not only every one of your shots it going but also your opponents shots are going almost before they come off the racket, don't you?"

Without batting an eye, he said, "Yep".  Then I said, "Can you teach that?"  "Yes I can."  "Then teach me how to do that!"

Now I was a slow learner, but he was a huge help to my game.

Rodman took that gift to the max for sure.  I'm also sure if you as Russell and Shaq and Wilt they would answer that the exact same way.  

db

Not sure Rodman is the “best” rebounder of all time, but he is definitely in the conversation. I’d say he also is in the conversation as one of the best defenders of all time.

He remains my favorite non Celtic player of all time. (Though Luka is closing in)

Moses Malone, anyone?

jrleftfoot wrote:Moses Malone, anyone?

Thank you, loved seeing his vintage 40-20 games in the thick of playoffs

cowens/oldschool wrote:

jrleftfoot wrote:Moses Malone, anyone?

Thank you, loved seeing his vintage 40-20 games in the thick of playoffs

                                  moses had great stamina, strength and will

jrleftfoot wrote:

cowens/oldschool wrote:

jrleftfoot wrote:Moses Malone, anyone?

Thank you, loved seeing his vintage 40-20 games in the thick of playoffs

                                  moses had great stamina, strength and will

Master of beating you to the spot, boxing out and using footwork to beat the box out, just relentless

There is something to be said for someone that's 6'7 that mastered the art of rebounding. You have to use more than just physical gifts.


KJ