Dennis Rodman is officially adding another legendary milestone to his career. The rebounding specialist is set to become a two-time Hall of Famer this spring. News broke on Friday that Rodman will join the WWE Hall of Fame on April 17 as a marquee highlight of WrestleMania Weekend in Las Vegas.
While his five NBA championship rings with the Chicago Bulls and Detroit Pistons are well-known, Rodman’s crossover into the world of professional wrestling remains one of the most electric eras of the 1990s. Starting in 1997, he brought his signature unpredictable energy to World Championship Wrestling (WCW).
His time in the ring was most famously defined by his partnership with Hulk Hogan. The duo competed in high-profile tag team matches that often blurred the lines between pro sports and pure entertainment. Most notably, Rodman stirred up controversy when he skipped a Bulls practice during the 1998 NBA Finals to appear on “Monday Night Nitro.” That appearance led to a massive pay-per-view showdown at Bash at the Beach, where he and Hogan faced off against Diamond Dallas Page and NBA rival Karl Malone.
By joining the WWE Hall of Fame’s celebrity wing, Rodman enters an elite circle that includes Mike Tyson, Muhammad Ali, and Pete Rose. However, he stands alone in one regard: he will be the only athlete to hold induction in both the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the WWE Hall of Fame.
Before his WCW run concluded at the Road Wild event in 1999, Rodman had already cemented himself as one of the greatest defensive players to ever step on a court. Inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2011, his 14-year career featured seven rebounding titles and an average of 13.1 boards per game. He was a two-time Defensive Player of the Year and a vital part of the Pistons’ 1989-1990 back-to-back titles, as well as the Bulls’ iconic three-peat from 1996-1998.
This April, Rodman will take the stage alongside Stephanie McMahon, A.J. Styles, and the tag team Demolition. For a man who built a career on defying the status quo, this second Hall of Fame jacket is a fitting tribute to a legacy that refuses to be put in a box.
