2. Isiah Thomas, Detroit Pistons
Yet another teammate that had a profound impact on Rodman on and off-the-court is the former Pistons legendary point guard Isiah Thomas. “Zeke” was Rodman’s teammate throughout every single one of the seasons they were with the Pistons. That included the two NBA Championships that “The Bad Boys” won together in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s.
Thomas was a whopping 12-time All-Star selection, two-time NBA Champion, 1984-85 assist champ, five-time All-NBA honoree, two-time All-Star Game MVP, and 1990 NBA Finals MVP. He was also one of the bigger thorns in the side of the Bulls best player in franchise history, beating him more times than not in the regular season and playoffs.
There was a noted rivalry between the Bulls and Pistons. That was especially true between the two players that also happen to be the last two names on this list. The Pistons reigned supreme in the NBA in the late 1980’s and very early 1990’s. Then they would wind up passing the torch to the Bulls as the best team in the Eastern Conference heading into the bulk of the seasons during the 1990’s.
The best season that Zeke put together as a teammate of Rodman was during the 1986-87 campaign. That was a really talented Pistons team in the starting five that included both Thomas and Dantley. But Thomas averaged 20.6 points per game, 10.0 assists, 3.9 rebounds, and 1.9 steals, while shooting 46.3 percent from the field in 1986-87.