Shaquille O'Neal Called This Hall Of Fame Teammate The Worst Teammate He Ever Had

During his time with the Chicago Bulls dynasty of the 1990s, Dennis Rodman caused a lot of trouble on the court, but especially behind the scenes. He attacked a cameramanduring a game (and got suspended 11 games for it), partied at all hours of the day, and skipped practice to wrestle at a WCW show.

During his time with the Chicago Bulls dynasty of the 1990s, Dennis Rodman caused a lot of trouble on the court, but especially behind the scenes. He attacked a cameraman during a game (and got suspended 11 games for it), partied at all hours of the day, and skipped practice to wrestle at a WCW show. But while he was notorious for those shenanigans and others, he was an effective third superstar for the Bulls; he didn't score much, but he grabbed a ton of rebounds and played tough defense on a team led by Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen. But when the Bulls dynasty crumbled, so did Rodman's career. 

It might not have seemed that way at first, as he joined the Shaquille O'Neal/Kobe Bryant Los Angeles Lakers late in the 1998-99 season. Going from one powerhouse team to another, it seemed that "The Worm" had an excellent opportunity to contribute despite being in his late 30s and a bit far removed from his peak as a rebounding and defensive specialist. But in a 2022 episode of "The Big Podcast with Shaq," O'Neal described Rodman as the worst teammate he ever had in his nearly two-decade-long NBA career.

"Worst teammate? Dennis Rodman," O'Neal said. "He was a great player, but he made it hard. Like when you try to corral the guys together and the people above you letting this one guy do whatever he wants."

Sounds like vintage Rodman indeed, as the Bulls often seemed to look the other way whenever the power forward was being as bad as he wanted to be. But what did he do to incur Shaq Diesel's ire during his ever-so-brief stint with the Lakers?

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