| DALLAS -- Dennis Rodman signed with the Dallas Mavericks on
Thursday and immediately made a sacrifice for his new team.
He's not going to the Pro Bowl.
| | Dennis Rodman played 23 games for the Lakers last season. |
Instead of partying in Hawaii, Rodman will be sweating his way back into playing shape after nearly a year's absence from the NBA. He'll make his debut at home Wednesday against Seattle.
Incoming team owner Mark Cuban said he's not sure whether Rodman
will travel with the team for road games Saturday against the Los
Angeles Clippers or Sunday against the Vancouver Grizzlies.
"If anything, I might take him to L.A. just to get him with his
trainer because he's getting that serious," said Cuban, who
personally pursued the NBA's most eligible free agent since shortly
after agreeing to buy the team in early January.
The 38-year-old forward has been out of the league since the Los
Angeles Lakers got tired of his act and cut him after 23 games last
April. He was holding out hope that new Lakers coach Phil Jackson
might give him another chance.
But after no contenders were interested, Rodman let Cuban start wooing him.
Rodman soaked up some attention last week, then bolted for Super
Bowl parties in Atlanta. While there, he floated the idea of
delaying his return until after the Pro Bowl and maybe even the NBA
All-Star game Feb. 13.
Rodman was back Tuesday and by Wednesday he began settling into
his new residence: the 4,000-square-foot guest house behind Cuban's
mansion.
Rodman passed a physical Thursday and signed a contract, then
went for his second workout of the day. He was not at Reunion Arena
for Dallas' game against Charlotte.
"I'm not going to try to stop Dennis from being Dennis," Cuban
said. "I'm not going to say, 'Ooh, Dennis, don't go out and party.
Ooh, Dennis, you're talking to the wrong girls.' No. Dennis, go out
and have fun -- be Dennis.
"Dennis has managed to be Dennis and be very successful on the
court for a long time."
Cuban also is allowing Rodman to ride a stationary bike instead
of practicing and giving him permission to arrive at games later
than his teammates.
"He didn't come to me and say I'm not going to do this or
that," Cuban said. "It was the exact opposite. I said, 'Dennis,
what is it going to take to make you successful? How do you prepare
for a game."'
Cuban said the decision to make Rodman his neighbor was a
practical one.
"I've got big fences," he said. "Everywhere he goes, he
creates a scene, so I wanted to protect him from that so he can
concentrate and focus."
Rodman will pay Cuban $3,000 rent per month, but not because the
billionaire co-founder of broadcast.com needs it. League rules
force him to charge the going rate, which is why reserve Greg
Buckner is paying $15 a day to drive one of Cuban's cars.
Although they make an odd couple, Cuban and Rodman seem to have
become fast friends.
"There's perception and there's reality. The reality of my
experience with Dennis Rodman is that he's a great guy to sit
around and talk to," Cuban said. "We were shooting baskets,
working on his shot, playing P-I-G and all that stuff. He's intense
about getting back into shape and getting his game back."
Because the Mavericks are over the salary cap, they had to give
Rodman a standard contract. He'll make $12,195 per game, which
comes out to about $465,000 for the rest of the season. The trading
deadline is three weeks away, but he's not eligible to be dealt
because he won't have been on the roster long enough.
The cheap contract makes Rodman a low-risk gamble.
Even if he returns to his bad-boy act and wears out his welcome
as he did in his previous four stops, he's already gotten people
talking about the Mavericks. And, his rebounding and defense could
help extend their recent hot streak.
"As long as he comes to work and gets the job done, I'm
thrilled to death," Cuban said. "Obviously, there's limits to
anything. But it's not part of the radar as far as I'm concerned."
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