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Former NBA star and character about town Dennis Rodman has been charged with misdemeanor battery after he allegedly slapped a man at a Florida rooftop bar several months ago, NBC News reported.
Rodman is accused of striking a patron in a Delray Beach bar — twice — while he was celebrating his 58th birthday in May, according to a police report. It wasn’t immediately clear why it took so long for Rodman to be charged.
The alleged victim told the Florida Sun-Sentinel in May that the slaps were unprovoked. “I was like, ‘What is your problem?’” he told the newspaper. “It was out of nowhere. He just hit me and I was blindsided.”
Rodman told TMZ at the time: “Whatever happened, happened, but it didn’t happen.” (Check out the video above.)
A lawyer for Rodman said: “We deny that any incident occurred.”
On Thursday, a defense lawyer entered a plea of not guilty to the charge in a Delray Beach court, NBC reported.
Rodman has had previous arrests, including one for suspected driving under the influence in California last year, and another after a hit-and-run car wreck in 2016. In May, the hall-of-famer was accused of stealing hundreds of dollars worth of clothing from a California yoga studio, but it doesn’t appear any charges will be filed.
Rodman’s most recent claim to fame has been his unusual friendship with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, which started when Rodman traveled to Pyongyang to watch an exhibition game by the Harlem Globetrotters in 2013.
On Thursday, Rodman refused to take Tucker Carlson’s bait on Fox News and bash LeBron James for criticizing an NBA manager who praised the Hong Kong protesters. “NBA players have an obligation to do one thing — it’s to play sports,” said Rodman. “When you put politics with sports, it doesn’t mix.”
Rodman could face a maximum of a year in jail if convicted.
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