Dennis Rodman has offered a fiery defense of his decision to lead an exhibition basketball game in North Korea.
Rodman will be in North Korea for the heavily-hyped exhibition, which will also feature professional basketball stars Kenny Anderson, Cliff Robinson, and Vin Baker.
Rodman joined CNN's New Day on Tuesday (January 7) to promote the game, but the discussion grew tense when he was questioned on if he will lobby on behalf of US citizen Kenneth Bae.
Bae has been detained in North Korea for more than a year, although the exact reasons for his detention are unclear.
"Kenneth Bae did one thing... If you understand what Kenneth Bae did. Do you understand what he did in this country?" Rodman told CNN host Chris Cuomo.
He added as he grew more heated: "Why is he held captive here in this country, why?... I would love to speak on this.
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"You know, you've got ten guys here, ten guys here, they've left their families, they've left their damn families, to help this country, as in a sports venture. That's ten guys, all these guys here, does anyone understand that? Christmas, New Year's."
Cuomo attempted to interject, but Rodman cut him off by replying: "I don't give a rat's ass what the hell you think!
"I'm saying to you, look at these guys here, look at them... they dared to do one thing, they came here!"
He went on to refer to North Korea's supreme leader Kim Jong-un as his "friend".
Rodman has made several trips to North Korea over the last year, and has personally met with North Korea's engigmatic leader.
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Justin is a freelance entertainment journalist and writer. He first joined Digital Spy as a freelance entertainment reporter in 2010 and also worked as a sub-editor for the brand, serving as Night News Editor from 2016 to 2024. Over more than a decade, Justin has covered numerous major entertainment events from the US and has interviewed a wide-ranging group of public figures, from comedian Steve Coogan to icons from the Star Trek universe, cast members from the Marvel Cinematic Universe and reality stars from numerous Real Housewives cities and the Below Deck franchise. Justin has also been on the ground to cover major pop culture events like the Star Wars Celebration and the D23 Expo. He's written for titles across the Hearst network, plus the likes of CBR and Us Weekly.
