Dennis Rodman was recently inducted into the NBA Hall of Fame. He was a major part of the Chicago Bulls organization back in the 1990’s when they won three NBA Championships. Apparently Rodman and the Bulls had a long distance fan that has just recently come to light. In 2011, Kim Jong Un came to power in North Korea in place of his father Kim Jong Il and now we find out that the younger Jong is an avid basketball fan and especially a fan of the Chicago Bulls.
Basketball is very popular in North Korea and even Dennis Rodman with his neon-bleached hair tattoos & nose studs was welcomed with much ceremony by officials of the North Korean government. Rodman was accompanied by three members of the Harlem Globetrotters basketball team to film a special for HBO by Vice Media.
Shane Smith the founder of Vice Media told the press before the group’s departure from Beijing that they would be engaging in a little “basketball diplomacy” by running a basketball camp for children and playing some pickup games with the locals…..and then, actually competing right alongside top athletes from North Korea.
Upon his arrival in Pyongyang, Rodman, who is widely known for his flamboyant style, became a most unlikely ambassador for basketball diplomacy at a time when relations between the United States and the Kim Jong Un regime. Perhaps someone like Dennis Rodman is exactly what is called for. Other efforts at bringing the two sides to talks have shown no results to date and it does seem that Rodman and the Globetrotters got along admirably well with Kim at al.
Dennis Rodman was known as one of the best defenders and rebounders to have ever played the game of basketball. He was on 5 NBA Championship teams.
Sending Dennis Rodman and the Globetrotters to the Peoples Republic of North Korea might seem a bit weird. Rodman is a dubious choice for ambassador, but, who knows…finding common ground on a basketball court could be a beautiful thing.
Kim even threw what has been called an “Epic Feast” for Rodman and his group after the exhibition game last week. According to the stories there was round after round of food and drink accompanied by an appropriate toasts for each round. Rodman gave a speech at the banquet before an overflow crowd telling Kim Jon Un, “You have a friend for life”.
