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Source: AFP,

DETROIT, Michigan – An emotional Dennis Rodman said it was hard to contemplate the honor of having his jersey number retired by the Detroit Pistons.

"I'm relieved that's over," Rodman said after a halftime ceremony in which a "Dennis Rodman 10" banner was raised to the rafters of the Pistons' Palace arena.

Rodman, who drew his share of critics with his outspoken ways in his playing days, will have to get used to such praise, however.

He said he was told Thursday to be in Houston for Sunday's announcement of inductees into the Basketball Hall of Fame.

It all seemed a bit strange to Rodman.

"It's a surprise to me that my number is being retired," Rodman said, although his former teammates were not surprised to see his name go up among fellow members of the Pistons' onetime "Bad Boys" teams -- Isiah Thomas, Joe Dumars, Bill Laimbeer and Vinnie Johnson.

"It's a well-deserved honor for Dennis," said Dumars, who is now the Pistons' president of basketball operations. "He was one of the great Bad Boys."

Detroit took Rodman in the second round of the 1986 NBA draft and he helped the team win NBA titles in 1989 and 1990.

He was then part of three of Chicago's Michael Jordan-era title teams, and also played for San Antonio, the Los Angeles Lakers and Dallas.

Rodman averaged only 7.3 points a game, but his uncanny ability to guard point guards or centers and haul in rebounds at either end of the court made him a great.

He was a two-time defensive player of the year and two-time All-Star and set an NBA record by leading the league in rebounds over seven straight seasons.

With his changing hair colors and multiple tattoos he grabbed attention on the court, while his off-court antics -- from a relationship with Madonna to run-ins with the law -- also made headlines.

"In about four weeks, I'll be 50 years old," Rodman said. "I don't believe I made it to that."