Dennis Rodman spent his entire career guarding the best of the best: Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, Shaquille O’Neal, you name it. So when he recently revealed the one guy who gave him the most trouble, you would expect it to be one of those names, right?
Nope. Rodman did not hesitate before saying on a recent stream with Neon who the person was.
“James Worthy from the Lakers. Always him.” Rodman admitted.
That is right. James Worthy. That answer might catch people off guard, especially since Worthy often gets overshadowed by the other stars from those 1980s Los Angeles Lakers teams like Magic Johnson and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
James Worthy never needed flash to get buckets
Worthy was not flashy in the way highlight reels tend to celebrate today’s stars. He was not a long-range shooter and did not light up the stat sheet with triple-doubles every night. But he was efficient, relentless, and made you pay for every mistake.
He owned the space between the paint and the three-point line. His game was built around fluid drives, precise floaters, crafty scoop shots, and a mid-range game that was money.
Worthy was also extremely durable. He played a minimum of 75 games every season except once in the 1991-92 season, where he was only available for 54 games.
Worthy played his role to perfection. He was a key piece in three Lakers championships and was always ready for big moments. There is a reason he was dubbed the nickname “Big Game James”. In fact, his most iconic performance came against Rodman’s own Detroit Pistons during the 1988 NBA Finals.
That series went the distance, and in Game 7, Worthy dropped a monster stat line. He finished with a whopping 36 points, 16 rebounds, and 10 assists. The performance was good enough to get his team the win and earn him a Finals MVP.
His career averages do not scream "impossible to guard". He averaged just 17.6 points, 5.1 rebounds, and 3 assists, but the impact he had on the floor was always way bigger than the numbers. It was how he moved without the ball, how quickly he made decisions, and how smart he played.
That is the part Rodman, a defensive genius, clearly respected. It is also a reminder of how deep the Lakers’ legacy runs. When even Worthy can be a "forgotten" legend to some fans, you know your franchise has an insane history.
That is not the case for Rodman. For him, Worthy was not just another matchup. He was the toughest one. The Lakers' Showtime era now has another thing to be remembered for: having one of the toughest players to defend.