Dennis Rodman has responded after being called out by his daughter, U.S. women’s national team star Trinity Rodman, for not being enough of a presence in her life.
The five-time NBA champion took to Instagram to offer a reply after the Washington Spirit forward discussed her childhood on the Call Her Daddy podcast. In the interview, the 2024 Olympic gold medal-winner said the Basketball Hall of Famer was ‘not a dad. Maybe by blood, but nothing else.’
On Thursday, the elder Rodman — who played alongside Michael Jordan as a key part of the ‘three-peat’ Chicago Bulls teams in the 1990s — offered an apology of sorts, though he also insisted that he has been present to some degree.
‘Sorry I wasn’t the Dad you wanted me to be but either way I still tried and I still Try and Never will Stop,’ read the caption to Rodman’s Instagram post, which featured several photos of him with his children.
Here’s what to know about Dennis Rodman’s statement on his relationship with Trinity Rodman and the rest of his children.
Dennis Rodman: ‘I was told not to show up’ to daughter Trinity’s NWSL games
Dennis Rodman’s social media post continued past apologizing for not being around as much as Trinity would have liked, with the former NBA standout claiming that he has reached out.
‘I will keep Trying even when you’re being told as an adult not to respond to my phone calls,’ continued the former NBA standout. ‘I will try even when it’s difficult and if it takes a long time. I’m always here And tell you all the time rather it’s your voice or voicemail how proud I am. I always had one wish and it was I wish my kids would call me and come see me. Hopefully one day I can get that. I’m here and I’m still trying pick up the phone you have my number, You see me calling, I’m still here Dennis RODMAN- Dad.
‘FYI: I watch you play All the time (actually flew in to watch you play and was told not to show up bc who I was with instead and me just wanting to support you So I watched you from my hotel balcony just to make everybody happy. I love All My Kids #untold #storys’
Dennis’ presence in the stands for Spirit or USWNT matches came up in Trinity’s interview, with the 22-year-old going into detail about a 2021 incident where she discovered while in the middle of an NWSL playoff game for the Spirit that her father had shown up to see her unannounced.
‘When he showed up at my game, I was like, so mad,’ exclaimed Rodman. ‘They were in the suite, field-side… My rookie year, going into a quarterfinal, like, I’m already s— my pants, as it is. I’m stressed, like, ‘Oh my gosh, we have to win.’
‘I think it’s like, halfway through the first half, and I hear it. And his voice to me is like [high-pitched sound], so I hear him go, ‘Let’s go Rodman! Let’s go Trinity!’ And I’m like, Oh my f— gosh. There’s no way this is happening right now. Mind you, I haven’t seen him or talked to him in months. Months! …
‘I start crying on the field. So I’m trying to play the soccer game, and I’m crying. I don’t know if we got a water break, I think there was an injury, [but] we go into the huddle and I go to Ashley Sanchez — which is one of my best friends — go to her in the huddle while our coach is trying to give us direction of what’s working, what’s not working, because we were playing horrible the first half. I’m looking at Ash, I’m crying. No one knows what the f— is going on. I’m looking at Ash, and I’m like, ‘Dude, my dad’s here,’ and she knew immediately.’
Rodman said that Washington’s coaching staff offered her the chance to be substituted at halftime but that she insisted on fighting on. Rodman would end up playing a factor in the game-winning goal, with her shot in extra time leading to a rebound that teammate Ashley Hatch fired home for a 1-0 win. The Spirit would go on to win the NWSL championship, with Rodman scoring in a 2-1 win over OL Reign in the semifinal before getting the assist on Kelley O’Hara’s game-winner in the title game.