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The Last Dance: 48 hours (or more) in Las Vegas. With Dennis Rodman.

By Duncan Smith

Dennis Rodman (L) of the Chicago Bulls gets his feet tangled with Vlade Divac(R) of the Charlotte Hornets 06 May in the second half of their NBA eastern conference semifinals game at the United Center in Chicago. The Hornets won the game 78-76 to tie the series at 1-1. AFP PHOTO/Jeff HAYNES (Photo by JEFF HAYNES / AFP) (Photo credit should read JEFF HAYNES/AFP via Getty Images)
Dennis Rodman (L) of the Chicago Bulls gets his feet tangled with Vlade Divac(R) of the Charlotte Hornets 06 May in the second half of their NBA eastern conference semifinals game at the United Center in Chicago. The Hornets won the game 78-76 to tie the series at 1-1. AFP PHOTO/Jeff HAYNES (Photo by JEFF HAYNES / AFP) (Photo credit should read JEFF HAYNES/AFP via Getty Images) /
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After Scottie Pippen came back to the Chicago Bulls in 1997-98, Dennis Rodman needed a vacation. He bolted to Las Vegas, and guess what happened next? ESPN’s MJ doc, The Last Dance, tells the tale.

As we continue to watch The Last Dance, ESPN’s Michael Jordan documentary focusing on the 1997-98 Chicago Bulls. To be honest, we’re already neck-deep in incredible stories, but so far the most preposterous tale has to come in the form of a mid-season vacation taken by Dennis Rodman.

For 48 hours.

In Las Vegas.

Needless to say, this vacation lasted a lot longer than 48 hours (even though that’s the perfect amount of time for a Vegas vacation). After being a model citizen as Michael Jordan’s wingman with Scottie Pippen out of the lineup, Rodman needed to get away and blow off steam. He requested a vacation, and with some doing, got approval from both Jordan and head coach Phil Jackson.

As Jordan tells it:

"“So he [Jackson] looks at Dennis and says, ‘Dennis, can your vacation be like 48 hours?’ And Dennis is like, ‘I’ve got no other choice, I’ll take whatever you can give me, I’ll take the 48 hours.’ ‘48 hours. You’ve got 48 hours, Dennis.’ And I’m looking at Phil like, ‘You ain’t gonna get that dude back in 48 hours. I don’t care what you say, he’s done. Mmkay. 48 hours.’ He leaves that room, goes straight to the airport, boom. We don’t hear or see Dennis for 48 hours.”"

Naturally, Rodman had a wild time in Vegas and it ended up stretching to more like 88 hours, well beyond the period of time he had permission for from the Bulls.

It’s hard to imagine a person better suited for a ridiculous mid-season jaunt to Sin City than Dennis Rodman. But, in the eyes of both Phil Jackson and Michael Jordan, the man earned the right to go crazy for a couple of days.

And as Jordan knew, things went on a whole lot longer than 48 hours. Maybe thanks to the passing of time as the story is retold in The Last Dance, more than two decades later, he didn’t seem too upset about having to go recover Dennis Rodman from his hotel room after they decided enough was enough.

Next. TLD: How legit was the hate between MJ and the Pistons?. dark