Rodman Teammate: North Korea Didn’t Fund Our Trip

‘Going to North Korea was about the experience’

Rodman Teammate Charles Smith: North Korea Didn't Pay Us (CNN)

(CNN) -- Charles Smith insisted Sunday that the former NBA players who went to North Korea for a basketball diplomacy trip, led by Dennis Rodman, weren't paid by the repressive regime.

"Absolutely not. I think I am astute enough to understand the dynamics, especially collecting monetary dollars from North Korea. No, we did not get paid from North Korea at all," he told CNN in a lengthy exclusive interview on "New Day Sunday."

Smith, who retired from the NBA in 1997 after nine seasons, said an Irish online betting company and a documentary film crew paid expenses for the ex-players turned hoops ambassadors.

 

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