Ahead of tonight’s new episode of “The Last Dance,” we take a look at why the New Orleans Pelicans need their own Dennis Rodman.
The Michael Jordan documentary “The Last Dance” has shown the championship Chicago Bulls in all their dysfunctional glory. Teams like the New Orleans Pelicans are probably glad that their front office, coaches and players aren’t actors in a daily soap opera like the 1997-98 Bulls.
But the team won six titles not just in spite of the dysfunction, but seemingly because of it.
The fact that the Bulls were so successful whilst waging daily internal battles shows that success doesn’t have to come on rainbow full of hugs. Sometimes a little sand in the ointment keeps everyone on their toes.
Part of this came from Jordan himself, whose ultra-competitive nature and almost psychotic need for perfection pushed his teammates to go to war with him even if they didn’t really even like him.
There were outside forces at play as well, as the Bulls always seemed to have an antagonist, whether it was Isaiah Thomas and the Bad Boys Pistons, Patrick Ewing and the Knicks or Shaquille O’Neal and the Magic.
Then there was the murder of Jordan’s father, his retirement and short-lived career in baseball. The Bulls always seemed to have something to overcome.
Some of it was on the team, as the Bulls employed one player during the second 3-peat who was a walking dysfunctional family unto himself.
Dennis Rodman was a character unlike the NBA had ever seen or is likely to see again.
He was a villain to Jordan’s hero, a guy who pushed the boundaries on and off the court, and whose tsunami of a personality became the focal point of his team.
Rodman was an agitator whose play, attitude and personality brought the right amount of crazy to a team that needed it.
The New Orleans Pelicans need someone just like him. Here’s why.
The Worm Does the Dirty Work
Rodman was known as “The Worm” for good reason.
He was a pest. He was annoying and got under the other team’s skin, forcing them to scratch an itch that never seemed to go away.
But he was also called The Worm because he was able to worm his way to the basket through tunnels of his own making.
In short, Rodman did everything you want a role player to do when you have two superstars. He did the dirty work.
Rodman was one of the greatest rebounders of all-time, averaging 13.1 boards per game for his career, but grabbing more than 15 a game six times in his career and winning the rebounding title a record seven years in a row.
At only 6-foot-7, Rodman used otherworldly jumping ability and an acute instinct for where the ball was going to be.
He was so good as a rebounder that he would affect games without taking a shot. He was so good as a rebounder that the Bulls basically played four on five on offense, as Rodman had no interest in touching the ball on that end unless it was on the offensive glass.
He didn’t care about offensive stats or scoring because the Bulls didn’t need him to and Rodman always did what was needed.
This included guarding literally anyone else on the other team. Rodman wasn’t even the best defender on the Bulls (that title goes to Pippen) but he was the most willing.
Rodman would defend the other team’s best wing, their center, the team mascot, he didn’t care. This included locking up Shaq in the Eastern Conference Finals even though he was giving up five inches and several thousand pounds.
Rodman would dive on the floor, take a charge, throw a few shoves and if there was a loose ball, he was going to get it.
In short, he would do whatever the team needed him to do to get the win.
This is the type of player the New Orleans Pelicans need.
The Pelicans have all of the flash and scoring they can handle. They have plenty of finesse, plenty of guys who can do the pretty things.
What they need is a guy who does the ugly ones.
Outside of Derrick Favors, who is likely to walk in free agency, the New Orleans Pelicans lack their own “Worm.”
Rodman’s rebounding, defense and relentless hustle allowed the more skilled players to do their thing.
The New Orleans Pelicans need a guy like this, whether he is in the starting lineup or coming off the bench, they need a player who does the things Rodman did for the Bulls.
The Pelicans have some good defenders in Jrue Holidy and Lonzo Ball, but they don’t have the one lockdown guy who will take on anyone on the other team.
Holiday is close in that regard and is a willing defender against much larger guys like LeBron James, but Holiday is needed to carry the load on the offensive end as well, and his offense suffers when he is asked to defend guys twice his size.
The New Orleans Pelicans need a defensive specialist who can take on the other team’s bigs and not back down. They need someone who focuses on the little things that don’t necessarily show up in the stats but are vital for victory.
Every great team has to balance flash with some grit and these New Orleans Pelicans are currently lacking the latter.
The New Orleans Pelicans are too Nice
Words like “soft” get thrown around way too much by NBA fans.
It’s especially hilarious to see a keyboard warrior who can’t tie his own shoes without getting out of breath telling a superhuman athlete that he is “soft” from the safe confines of his computer screen.
The New Orleans Pelicans are certainly not soft, but they lack a certain edge.
Their best player, Zion Williamson, is a 19-year-old smile and dunk machine. Though he occasionally does things like this:
Lonzo Ball plays with attitude but is still mostly a really nice guy, even funny.
Brandon Ingram is an assassin on the offensive end, but is still built like he has a wire hanger for shoulders.
This is all a good thing, as the New Orleans Pelicans are a very likable team with marketable stars, one of which is the future face of the league.
But they also need someone who occasionally throws a punch.
The New Orleans Pelicans got pushed around by bigger teams, knocked off the ball and at times run right through.
Watching the New Orleans Pelicans try to stop LeBron was like watching a bunch of kids trying to stop their teenage older brother.
He’s twice their size, way stronger and most importantly has no fear of his younger brother and crew.
The New Orleans Pelicans need a guy who can’t be pushed around, who stands his ground and isn’t looking for a reason to abdicate his defensive duties for a fast break dunk.
Rodman was that guy for the Bulls.
He not only agitated the other team, but occasionally delivered a hard foul just to let them know it wasn’t going to be easy.
The New Orleans Pelicans give up too many easy buckets and no one is afraid to take it into the lane. That needs to change.
The New Orleans Pelicans are 28th in points allowed in the paint partially because they don’t have a true rim protector and no one is afraid to come into the lane.
Obviously the game has changed tremendously since the 1990’s and half the things Rodman did would get him tossed instantly from a modern game.
I’m not advocating dirty play, but the New Orleans Pelicans need a guy who is not afraid to mix it up occasionally, to let the other team know it is not going to be easy.
The Worm is the Wild Card
How do you game plan for a guy who doesn’t touch the ball except on rebounds?
This is what teams were up against when they faced the 1997-98 Bulls. Of course you have to try and stop Jordan (good luck) and Pippen, that’s a given.
But teams also had to plan for Rodman, a guy who guarded everyone on one end and only cared about offensive rebounds on the other. He was the wild card that was hard to account for when you have superstar scorers to worry about.
The New Orleans Pelicans have the scorers but they don’t have that wild card.
Rodman’s antics often drew technical fouls that hurt the team and there were times it was obvious Jordan wanted to kill him.
But these antics also drew the team closer together, rallied them around a common cause (keeping Rodman in check) and drove the other team nuts.
Again, I’m not advocating that the New Orleans Pelicans need a guy who gets a lot of stupid technicals and fouls, but a guy who the other players will rally around for better or worse.
Rodman was a tornado that everyone had to worry about, which helped focus his team and keep the opponent off-balance.
This was true off the court as well, where Rodman’s wedding dresses, celebrity girlfriends and regular appearances on TMZ kept the attention off NBA Golden Child Michael Jordan, who had plenty of his own demons.
Attention had to be paid to Rodman, who was the wild card the Bulls needed.
Rodman was one of those guys who you hate if he’s not on your team but love once he is.
His relentless hustle, rebounding and defense helped define the latter-day Bulls. He agitated the other team while bringing his closer and he brought a little edge and attitude while he did it.
The New Orleans Pelicans have a very young and talented team, but they need their own Dennis Rodman, a little more toughness, a little more crazy.
They need that big personality to rally around, the Worm who gets under everyone’s skin but ultimately gets the job done.
Dennis Rodman won seven consecutive rebounding titles and ended his career with five rings. You can debate his off the court stuff, but cannot deny that he was a winner and the New Orleans Pelicans need someone just like him.
Thanks for reading, enjoy “The Last Dance” and stay safe out there!