Trinity Rodman aiming to secure legacy at World Cup and escape NBA icon's shadow

The 21-year-old - daughter of Chicago Bulls icon Dennis - is part of America's squad for the global tournament, which starts later this week.

Already an 18-cap international, the California native - tipped to be Megan Rapinoe's successor once she retires at the end of 2023 - has declared she is aiming to create her own legacy in the sporting world.

The Washington Spirit forward, who is the second youngest player in the squad, has found the back of the net four times for the USA national team.

Two of those strikes came in the recent friendly win over Wales, with her double sealing a 2-0 victory for the defending World Cup champions.

Rodman believes helping USA claim a third consecutive World Cup will see her finally shake off the reputation that she has only got to where she has because of her surname.

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As well as playing alongside NBA legend Michael Jordan with the Chicago Bulls, Dennis was also known for his rather outlandish behaviour off the court, including kicking a camera man and head-butting a referee.

Not to mention he once called North Korea's Supreme Leader Kim Jong-Un a 'friend for life'.

Of course, his 21-year-old daughter knows all about her dad's antics as well as his basketball heroics. However she insists she can build her own legacy separate to that.

Speaking to ESPN, she said of her five-time NBA Champion father: "My dad made a lot of mistakes through his career. I don't want to say the wild child, but he was.

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"I think being a woman coming from the Rodman name, coming from the NBA legacy of Dennis Rodman, it was important [that] I didn't want the comments of she's only here because of that.

"She's only here because there's potential in the last name. That has always been important to me and will continue to be.

"But at the end of the day, I want the name to be Trinity Rodman and she earned it herself, not because she has that last name but because she earned her way."

Rodman has also insisted that she 'expects' to win the World Cup having been part of the USA squad that won the CONCACAF W Championship last year, as well as two SheBelieves Cups.

She remarked: "My expectations are that we're the most ruthless team, we're never going to give up and we're going to get the title.

"Obviously the team has changed so much over the last couple of World Cups, even the past couple of months, but this team is something special.

"We want it more than ever, so I expect a gold medal."

And Rodman has also revealed she has taken aspects out of her dad's game, with Dennis labelled as the 'best rebounding forward in NBA history'.

Commenting on how she has taken his basketball skills out onto the pitch, she stated: "It's hunting in front of the goal. It's hunting when you lose the ball.

"And I think that's a huge part of my game — regains, tracking back and being the first person to get a foot, a head, a knee, a shin on something that pops up.

"Even if he wasn't the first guy under the basket or he was next to Shaq [O'Neal], who was way bigger, way taller, he was going to get the rebound.

"It was timing, it was anticipation, it was body movement, it was positioning, it was everything. And I think he was so intelligent and I think people take that away.

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"He was a freak of nature. He was an insane athlete, but at the end of the day, he, I think, was one of the smartest players at the time. He knew the game."

Rodman's ambition to become a household name in her own right starts on Saturday, when USA face Vietnam in their opening group stage match.

You can follow live commentary of the 2023 Women's World Cup on the talkSPORT network, with our coverage kicking off on Saturday with England vs Haiti on talkSPORT at 10.30am