Dennis Rodman Announces His Mom's Passing: "Forever My Angel"
"Thank you for being my mother."
Updated Sept. 7 2024, 12:24 p.m. ET
With his loud style and colorful personality, Dennis Rodman brought a lot of buzz to the NBA during his time as a pro basketball player.
But before he became a household name, he was just a kid who trying to navigate growing up in a house full of women: his mom, Shirley, and his sisters Debra and Kim.
Dennis's dad, Phil, had disappeared, leaving Shirley to raise three kids while working multiple jobs to support them.
"It was a female family, and I think we just overwhelmed Dennis," Shirley told Sports Illustrated in 1988.
Though Dennis admitted in 2011 that his relationship with his mother became troubled when he reached his teens — and that she had kicked him out of the house at one point — he also acknowledged that he hadn't "been a great son" to her over the years, even after he became famous.
It's clear their relationship had been complicated. But when Shirley passed in September 2024, Dennis thanked her for everything with a lovely tribute.
Dennis Rodman announced on social media that his mom died.
On Sept. 5, Dennis posted a carousel of photos to Instagram featuring his mother. He captioned the post:
"Thank you for the Memories ✨ Thank you for creating Me Dennis Rodman Thank you for being My Mother Forever My Angel 😇 RIP Mom! From your only son as you would say 🤞🏾#mom #rip #love #goodlife."
Fans and fellow athletes alike flooded into the comments section to send their condolences. "My deepest condolences brother. May she rest in peace. Love you brother," wrote former basketball player Olden Polynice. Former WBNA star Lisa Leslie posted several prayer emojis as well.
Dennis Rodman once said that his dad had fathered nearly 50 children.
"I never had a father," Dennis said during his 2011 Hall of Fame speech. "My father left me when I was 5 years old. He has 47 kids in the Philippines, and I'm the oldest one. And he wrote a book about me in Chicago and made a lot money. But he never came and said hello to me. But that didn't stop me from persevering." He went on to thank the mentors who served as father figures in his life: Phil Jackson, Jerry Buss, James Rich, and Chuck Daly.
