President Trump publicly reunited with former NBA star Dennis Rodman at campaign rallies on Oct. 1, fueling speculation that Rodman might help arrange a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Rodman visited North Korea several times between 2013 and 2017 and developed a personal rapport with Kim. Trump has privately discussed a possible meeting at the APEC summit in Shenzhen (Nov. 18–19), but Pyongyang has reportedly rebuffed some outreach and no meeting has been confirmed. Trump has also directed the Pentagon to scale back joint U.S.-South Korea exercises as he touts renewed diplomacy.
Trump Reconnects With Dennis Rodman — Could Rodman Help Arrange a Meeting With Kim Jong Un?
Former NBA player Dennis Rodman speaks to members of the media as he leaves after attending US President Donald Trump's visit to Peterbilt Motors in Denton, Texas, US, October 1, 2026.
President Donald Trump publicly reunited with former NBA star Dennis Rodman at campaign rallies on Oct. 1, sparking speculation that Rodman — who has cultivated a personal rapport with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un — might be able to help facilitate the meeting Trump says he seeks.
Background
Dennis Rodman, celebrated as one of the NBA's greatest rebounders and known for his flamboyant style, traveled to North Korea several times between 2013 and 2017 and developed an unconventional relationship with Kim. After his basketball career, Rodman appeared on reality television and remained a prominent, if unlikely, interlocutor in informal U.S.-North Korea exchanges.
Rallies and Reactions
Rodman joined Trump for two campaign events on Oct. 1 — in Denton, Texas, and Durant, Oklahoma (where Rodman played college basketball at Southeastern Oklahoma State University). The White House did not explain why Rodman was part of the president's entourage at the rallies, which were aimed at energizing Republican voters ahead of the November midterm elections.
Dennis Rodman and Enes Freedom stand during President Donald Trump’s rally at the Choctaw Event Center in Durant, Okla., on Thursday, Oct. 1, 2026.
"You know, when I wanted to get to know Kim Jong Un, when we were having a problem — Kim Jong Un and I get along — but the one who knew him best was Dennis Rodman," Trump said at a Texas event. "He's a special guy."
As Rodman left Texas to ride in the president's motorcade to Oklahoma, he told Reuters he hoped to speak with Trump about "life." Asked whether he planned to return to North Korea, Rodman quipped, "If you buy the ticket."
At the events Rodman wore a black Chicago Bulls cap, sunglasses and a T-shirt with an image of himself holding an NBA Finals trophy. In Oklahoma he appeared alongside former NBA player Enes Kanter Freedom, a vocal critic of the Turkish government and a conservative activist who has sparked debate with his statements about transgender athletes.
Diplomatic Context
Trump has said he plans to meet Kim later this year and has privately discussed the possibility of a face-to-face encounter at the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit scheduled for Nov. 18–19 in Shenzhen, China, according to reports in The Wall Street Journal. No official meeting has been confirmed and U.S. officials say North Korea has rebuffed some of the president's overtures.
President Donald Trump shakes hands with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un as they meet at the demilitarized zone separating the two Koreas, in Panmunjom, South Korea, June 30, 2019.
In recent weeks Trump has emphasized his personal rapport with Kim as an asset in diplomacy and has directed the Pentagon to scale back joint military exercises with South Korea — a longstanding U.S. ally — saying Seoul should contribute more to its own defense. Trump has also repeatedly criticized the growth of North Korea's nuclear arsenal, noting in recent remarks that he believes Kim possesses dozens of nuclear weapons.
Past Talks And Their Limits
During his first term, Trump met Kim three times without setting formal preconditions; their 2019 encounter at the Korean demilitarized zone included a moment when the president briefly stepped across the military demarcation line into North Korean territory. Those meetings did not yield an agreement for Pyongyang to abandon its nuclear arsenal in exchange for sanctions relief.
Contributing: Reuters
Reach Joey Garrison on X @joeygarrison.
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