Dennis Rodman built his Hall of Fame career by dominating the paint, grabbing rebounds, and frustrating opponents. But one of the most unusual chapters of his basketball journey came after he retired from the NBA, when a random night out in Finland led to a $100,000 payout and an unexpected return at 44 years old in 2005.
Speaking on the Above The Rim podcast, Rodman recalled that he never planned to play during the trip. It was a remarkable experience that showed how creative and wild Dennis Rodman was.
“Well, I didn’t want to play, man. They just asked me to go. I just wanted to go out there, have a good time, do my thing, you know. You know, I like the nightlife, man. I’m up there shooting. I came to shoot. I figured I’d shoot a f***ing basketball because I hadn’t shot a basketball in so damn long.”
Aleksi Valavuori, who was the general manager of the Finnish club Torpan Pojat, happened to spot Rodman at a bar in Helsinki. After speaking with Rodman for a few minutes, the deal was done, and the agreement was to pay him $100,000 for a single game.
“I was at the bar ordering drinks. I looked to my left, and I was like, ‘What the f**k?’ Big cowboy hat. ‘Am I really this drunk? That Dennis Rodman is in Helsinki? No way.’ Then suddenly I remembered there was this headline that Dennis Rodman had gone to some wife-carrying competition.”
“And I went to talk to Dennis. ‘Dennis, hi. My name is Alexi. You probably don’t know me, but we have this basketball club here in Finland called ToPo. Would you come and play for us?’ I said, ‘Yeah, I’m serious, but I need to know the budget.’ And then Dennis said, ‘You know, my agents are sitting right there.’ And we went there and talked, and they were as hammered as I was.”
“And they thought it was a joke, you know. Then a few minutes later, we had these… what do you call those things you put under your glasses?” “Coasters?” “So after a few minutes, we were signing and making the deal.”
Despite admitting at halftime that he hadn’t touched a basketball in months, Rodman still entertained a sold-out crowd in Helsinki.
But instead of being the usual rebounding specialist that made him famous during his NBA days, Rodman became an unlikely perimeter shooter. He shot 13 three-pointers and hit five of them as he finished with 17 points and six rebounds in 28 minutes in an 80-74 loss to Espoo Basket.
That Finland experience wasn’t his only international basketball adventure.
A few months later, he signed a short-term deal to play for the Brighton Bears in the British Basketball League. He started off with four points and five rebounds in the first game in a 91-88 win against Guildford Heat. But two days later, he delivered a vintage performance in an 85-75 loss to the Newcastle Eagles.
He recorded 11 points and 23 rebounds, which was then the single-game rebounding record. That record has since been surpassed, but it was one of the most incredible performances by a former NBA star in that league.
He ended his England stint after three games after fighting through a knee injury.
His overseas appearances were brief but demonstrated how Rodman remained an attraction long after leaving the NBA. Whether it was signing a contract on a bar coaster, drawing crowds in Finland or setting records in England, it proved that Rodman was a larger-than-life personality.
More than two decades after his final NBA game, The Worm still found a way to amaze fans from all around the world. And sometimes, it took nothing more than a chance meeting at a bar and an invitation he couldn’t refuse.
