Eccentric former NBA star Dennis Rodman's budding bromance with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has taken its next step, with Rodman reportedly traveling to the country's capital city of Pyongyang to train its national basketball team.
Yes, you read that correctly.
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The occasion this time around? A supposedly star-studded exhibition game between the North Korean national team and an "NBA all-stars team" to commemorate Kim's 31st birthday in early January. The match is sponsored by an Irish online betting company called Paddy Power. Rodman will train the North Korean squad for its matchup against the NBA side.
Rodman's first trip to the secretive, isolated dictatorship took place this spring. It was billed as a "basketball diplomacy mission" by sponsoring media company Vice, which turned the voyage into a decidedly surreal episode in its HBO news magazine series.
The trip was capped by a through-the-looking-glass moment in which Rodman appeared on ABC and implored President Barack Obama to call him. Rodman said he could help foster an understanding between Obama and Rodman's new friend Kim, who grew up as a huge fan of Rodman's championship Chicago Bulls teams.
Rodman's return comes at particularly volatile time for North Korea. Kim's uncle, once a trusted advisor and mentor to the current leader, was executed last week after accusations of treason and fatuous debauchery. An 85-year-old Korean War veteran from the United States was released and repatriated this month after being detained for over a month while on vacation.
The United States government has no diplomatic relations with North Korea, and strongly advises American citizens against traveling there. Earlier this year, North Korea engaged in some nuclear brinksmanship with the Obama administration.
Kim's birthday basketball exhibition is backed by both Paddy Power and a Beijing-based company called Koryo Tours. A Paddy Power spokesperson told The New York Times on Tuesday that Rodman would arrive in North Korea via Beijing on Thursday with a documentary film crew in tow, then stay in the country until next Monday.
On its website, Koryo Tours offers an "all inclusive" multi-day travel package to North Korea for the exhibition match taking place "on the auspicious date of January 8th (DPRK Leader Kim Jong Un’s birthday)."
The site also promises an all-star lineup of NBA legends, and says Rodman will release the roster in the near future. The five-day travel package is listed for a price of 6,500 Euros.
Rodman's Hall of Fame NBA career lasted 14 season, but his on-court exploits were often overshadowed by his antics off of it. He battled substance abuse, clashed with authority figures and married actress Carmen Electra in a highly publicized but short-lived affair.
Contacted by the Associated Press late last week, Rodman had this to say about his upcoming training mission:
Yes, I'm going to North Korea to train the basketball team. I'm going to bring American players over there. Yes I am. I'm going to be the most famous person in the world when you see American people holding hands and hoping the doors can be opened. If they can. If they can. If they can. I'm going. I'm going back for his birthday. Special.
"Special" — that's certainly one way to describe it.
Image: Toru Yamanaka/AFP/Getty Images