http://www.nydailynews.com/sports/basketball/knicks/2007/08/03/2007-08-03_at_43_oakley_wants_to_play_again-1.html

At 43, Oakley wants to play again

BY FRANK ISOLA
DAILY NEWS SPORTS WRITER

Friday, August 3rd 2007, 4:00 AM

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Charles Oakley is so old that he calls Dikembe Mutombo "Junior." As a matter of fact, Oakley is so old that he broke into the league two years before Knicks rookie Wilson Chandler was born.

But the rugged power forward who played against Isiah Thomas and with Eddy Curry is serious about making a comeback. The 43-year-old, one of the most beloved players ever to wear a Knicks uniform, believes there are plenty of teams that could use his toughness, leadership and defense.

He specifically mentioned the Knicks, Nets, Cavs and Mavs. "Look at how bad Cleveland was in the NBA Finals," said Oakley, proving his tongue is still as sharp as his elbows. "They had big guys who couldn't move and can't shoot. They never knocked Tony Parker on his butt.

"I'm not saying I'm better than guys who play every day. But I can play 20 minutes a night. I understand the game. I can shoot, make free throws and defend. A lot of teams don't have a general on the floor. I'm not trying to steal from anybody. Give me a tryout and if you don't think I can do it, then just cut me."

Since telling the Toronto Star last week about his plans to play again, Oakley claims that he's attracted the interest of several teams but declined to name any.

It is unlikely that the Knicks, with 16 players under contract, could find a spot for Oakley. Two seasons ago, Thomas and former coach Larry Brown considered signing him but Oakley passed.

Oakley and Curry have remained close since being teammates in 2001-02 with the Bulls. Curry even asked Oakley for permission to wear Oakley's old No. 34 when Curry joined the Knicks.

Oakley thinks that Curry could be a franchise-caliber player, but not until he improves his conditioning.

"I didn't think he was in shape all year," Oakley said over the telephone yesterday. "He's got to get in better shape."

As for his own fitness, Oakley claims that he is in top form despite being out of the league for three years. He weighs 245 pounds, which is five pounds less than his usual playing weight.

"I'm in better shape than 70 or 80% of the guys in the league," he said.

OAK the Eater of hearts...


Charles Oakley, has stolen the hearts of both his opponents and his own teammates.
Oakley is a serial Heart-Eater, the Hannibal Lecter of Heart-Eaters in sports. Started out with then-Philly forward Tyrone Hill's heart. Oakley liked the taste. Slapped Hill around before a shootaround. People seemed to respect him for it. Warmed to his work after that.
Instead of Tyrone Hill slapping back, or at least dropping some J's on Oak on-court, or bringing in some muscle to defend him, like Luca Brazi, or Suge Knight, Ty Hill only gulped, shrank, shriveled up and got traded from the Philadelphia 76ers to some place where they don't make Charles Oakleys.
Don't much care what Oakley's reasoning was for eating Hill's heart. Hill owed him some money? So? Does your mortgage company send somebody out to slap you around? Would you just sit there and take it and looked shocked if it did? Oak stole Ty Hill's heart. Oak stole little Jeffy McInnis' heart, real unfair because Jeffy is a Munchkin, compared to Oak.
Still, Oak slapped him around before a practice in L.A. because the Clippers guard supposedly hit, in the Biblical sense, some sassy bimbette Oak was supposedly sweet on. Hey, Oak, if you're gonna slap somebody around over shared affections of a woman, especially that particular coquette, you are going to be slapping people all day. McInnis didn't have a gangster brother to say to Oak, "You slapped my brother around in public?" So, Oak was not compelled to explain, "He was banging ****tail waitresses three at a time! I got a business to run here! Sometimes I gotta kick asses to make it run right!"
Ol' Oak even wanted to eat Vinsanity's heart last year, even though he was on the same team. Why do you think Toronto traded him?
Now Oak is gnawing on the beating left ventricle of Bulls coach Tim Floyd Horrible! Bon appetit, Oak.

This goes to Oakley. One of the networks needs to have a "Coolest guy on the planet" contest because Oakley would absolutely win. You know those "Road House" scenes in which Swayze just stands in the bar, surveying the scene with a thin smile on his face, barely moving a fingernail and meanwhile, 10 drunk guys are brawling a few feet away from him? That's what Oakley is like. You could hire some extras to play gang members at one of these parties, then have them fire blanks at each other 10 feet from Oakley and I'm not even sure he would flinch. The great thing about him: He served as MJ's enforcer in Chicago, and now they're both retired ... and from what I could tell, he's still Jordan's enforcer. Could there be a greater tribute in life to someone's kickassability than Michael Jordan himself deciding, "You know what? I need to make sure he's still on my side. I don't care if we're in our 40s."
Personally, I think Oak could do more. Why couldn't he become the next great action hero? He's got the looks, the size, the swagger ... at the very least, he could mumble through his lines and become the black Steven Seagal. For God's sake, everyone in the league is still afraid of him, personified by the one-sided Tyrone Hill/Oakley and Jeff McInnis/Oakley feuds, as well as the famous story of Oak slapping Barkley hard across the face during a '99 lockout players-only meeting, which became his signature "Here's why you don't mess with Oakley" moment.

Anyway, on Thursday night, I asked one relatively famous current player who knows him, "What makes Oakley more intimidating than everyone else?" His answer: "There's a lotta tough guys in the league, but Oak don't give a f---."

-Bill Simmons