DENNIS Rodman could undoubtedly use a few thousand hours of couch time with a psychiatrist. What shrink wouldn't relish the challenge of wrestling (sorry, couldn't resist) with the Weird One's gray matter? Some of us can
relate to RodmanBut Rodman definitely doesn't need a spin doctor.
Here's what you can bet didn't happen: Some NBA or Chicago Bulls P.R. suit did not suggest to Rodman that he pay for the funeral services of James Byrd Jr., the Texas man who was brutally killed by being chained to the back of a car earlier this week.
Rodman doesn't normally confer with others about how to polish his public image, nor what color to dye his hair on a particular day, for that matter.
Orchestrated, grandstand move? Sure.
But still an admirable one.
Interesting that the most bizarre personality in all of sports can be as good as he wants to be, when he wants to be.
And, by the way, who cares what he does on his day off?
Strange as it may sound, lots of hardworking people can relate to Rodman -- those who produce on the job when it really matters, and want to be free to do what they please otherwise, as long as it's legal and doesn't hurt anybody else.
Role model, schmoe model.
Please. And no more nonsense about the practice day not being a day off, or the importance of attending a news conference where there is no news. Coach Phil Jackson, the Bulls and their fans don't care if Rodman ever comes to practice if he gets every rebound and makes every free throw down the stretch like he did Wednesday.
Let's not forget that Lord Michael's been known to organize a few missed media sessions to go golfing -- or my goodness, play cards and roll the bones -- with the boys.
It's unpredictable what will happen to Rodman (unpredictable . . . Dennis Rodman?) when the Running of the Bulls becomes a reality. And it could start very soon, like tomorrow. Jordan and Jackson say they will leave Chicago one way or another after this season. But wherever Rodman ends up, he will draw. He represents the set upon, which judging by the moaning going on these days, includes a lot of people. Whether mainstream America likes it or not, many folks walk around wearing red No. 91 jerseys.
SPEAKING of mom and apple pie, we continue as a nation to just not get it when it comes to the World Cup.
Soccer remains the ugly stepchild of sports in America decades after the explosion in popularity was supposed to happen. It's good enough to use as a babysitter for millions of little kids, but apparently not interesting enough to hold the attention of Joe Sixpack. Sometimes even if he played the game competitively in high school.
Low scoring and competition for the fans' fancies from football, baseball, basketball and other sports where you can use your hands are cited as reasons why soccer is still just a cult thing in the U.S.
But it has a loyal following.
"The athleticism in soccer is better than other sports," says Kamehameha coach Laurie Baker. "Foot-eye coordination is a lot harder than eye-hand coordination, because you use eye-hand in everyday life."
When you really think about it, can a billion people be wrong? That's how many will watch World Cup games daily for the next month.
Here's the real reason America hasn't embraced soccer: Basically, at the international level, we're just not very good at it.
"We're not going to win the World Cup anytime soon. We'll be lucky to make it past the second round this year," says Jack Sullivan, Hawaii's most vocal soccer advocate. "But the United States Soccer Federation has a program called 2010. That's what they're shooting for."
Dave Reardon is a magazine editor and freelance
writer who has covered Hawaii sports since 1977.
He can be reached via the Star-Bulletin or
by email at dreardon@hmsa.com.
