"Smacked me on the butt" - Joe Smith recalls Dennis Rodman's wild antics to get under the skin of players
Numerous NBA players have recounted their experiences with Dennis Rodman over the years. Most recently, retired journeyman Joe Smith, who had a 16-year career in the league, revealed how "The Worm" would agitate players by slapping their butts during the games.
In a Vlad TV interview, Smith was asked about Rodman's unconventional on-court behavior, and he had a funny story to share.
“So I score, make a move, score, and as I'm going back down the court, he comes back down and smacks me on the butt, like, ‘Good move, young fella.’ So I'm like, ‘Okay, I got props from Dennis Rodman. Yeah, cool,’" Smith said (Timestamp - 0:56).
“So then I get a rebound and outlet it or something, and he'll do it again. Like, he just started doing it for random occasions now. So I'm like, ‘Yo, what is wrong with this guy? Why does he keep smacking me on the butt? I'm not on his team.’"
Despite Rodman’s antics, Smith said he remained unfazed and did not provide him with the reaction he sought.
“I'm young. I didn't know what to say, so I didn't say anything. But I guess he realized that it didn't rattle me, so he didn't bother me with it the next time we played,” he added.
However, Smith pointed out that Rodman's antics could be effective because he persisted in doing it.
“It was the amount of times he did it,” he said.
In contrast to Rodman's 212, Joe Smith had a non-controversial 16-year career, acquiring only 13 technical fouls.
A look at Joe Smith's long career
Joe Smith gained attention on social media recently when he shared his disappointment after discovering that his wife, Kisha Chavis, had an OnlyFans page.
As the No. 1 pick in the 1995 NBA Draft, Smith played for 12 different franchises over 16 years, concluding his career in 2011 with brief stints with the New Jersey Nets and the LA Lakers, totaling 16 games.
While Smith's list of accolades is relatively modest, with an All-Rookie team nomination during his time with the Golden State Warriors, his career spanned 1,030 games in the NBA. He had career averages of 10.9 points, 6.4 rebounds and 1.0 assists per game.
Smith's best individual season occurred in his second year with the Warriors, playing 80 games and notching averages of 18.7 points, 8.5 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.1 blocks per game.