it's a long interview but DEFINITELY worth reading if you're a Knicks fan...Isiah needs to bring Oakley in over the offseason to talk to these guys & teach them how to be a true Knick.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2005/writers/dave_hollander/04/19/oakley/1.html

SI.com: In '87 and '88 with Bulls you led the league in rebounding while your teammate, Michael Jordan, led the league in scoring. In '89 you joined the Knicks and competed against Jordan in many heated playoff games. Did playing with Jordan as a teammate help you play better against him as an opponent?

CO: Well, I never had to check him. The only time I had to see him was at the jump of the ball. He was more of an outside scorer. But he'd go inside sometimes, and that's my turf, so I'd let him know he's got to pay a toll. That's just part of the game.

SI.com: You were never one to shy away from confrontation on the court. In fact, the only time I've ever seen Charles Barkley visibly scared is when he played against you ...

CO: ...He should be scared every time he sees me.

SI.com: In a '96 game in Houston you threw Barkley to the floor -- it looked like a father scolding a cowering child. Why is Barkley afraid of you?

CO: Back in the day he did a couple of things he shouldn't have, and I'm not the type of guy you play with. He's a good player, and not to take anything from him, but I'm a serious guy. I think you've got to respect people at all times. He tried to disrespect me, and I don't go for that.

SI.com: You liked to send a message early. Sometimes very early, like when you were suspended for punching Jeff McInnis, then of the Los Angeles Clippers, during a morning shoot around. What was that all about?

CO: There were a few guys -- McInnis, Tyrone Hill -- they're just bums. They should be glad to just be able to walk around anywhere these days. I'll see them again.

SI.com: I'm going to give you names of players you played with and against. You give me a one or two sentences on how you feel about each.

SI.com: Vince Carter?

CO: Lots of talent. Hasn't really found himself. But now he's coming into his own. I guess he's growing up and understanding basketball. In Toronto, we had a lot of sideshows with him but he's playing well now.

SI.com: P.J. Brown?

CO: Who? ... He's OK.

SI.com: Patrick Ewing?

CO: Scoring center. One of the best players I played with, besides Michael Jordan.

SI.com: Shaquille O'Neal?

CO: Dominant. Unstoppable. Best player in the game right now.

SI.com: Isiah Thomas?

CO: Feisty. As GM of the Knicks he's in a tough position. It's like he's got a puzzle and he dropped pieces in the trash in ten different places. It'll be hard to put it together.

SI.com: You're originally from Cleveland. The Cavs recently fired Paul Silas. What are your thoughts on that?

CO: I think it was a bad decision. If you're going to fire a guy with 18 games left in the season, it better be because you want to go in a different direction. They were winning; now they're losing. And he was making a playoff run. It must be that somebody didn't get along with him. Why else would you fire him but then hire a bum coach like Tim Floyd. It's just crazy.

SI.com: Previously your coach in Chicago, Floyd landed the head coaching job at USC. How do you think that's going to work out?

CO: He's probably best for the college game. The NBA wasn't really his cup of tea. He wasn't patient enough. You've got be more committed -- more of an X and O guy. He's just a rah-rah guy and that's not going to work in the NBA. You've got to present something to rah-rah about. He just wanted to rah-rah but he had nothing to present.

SI.com: It's a different NBA these days. Players are younger and more sensitive now. You once remarked that "the league is just like day care." What shape is the NBA in now?

CO: Financially, the league is doing well because they're marketing overseas. The bulk of money used to be from the U.S. Now the league is international. Thirty percent of guys in the league are European; when I played you had maybe 10 guys. They were afraid to come because then it was a rough and tough league. Not taking anything away from them, but I don't think today's European players could have played back then. They're skilled, but when you get a lot them in the playoffs they can't hang, because in a series you play the same guys every night -- bumping and grooving. In the course of the season you play a tough guy maybe five times in 82 games. In the playoffs you've got to deal with a tough guy seven times in seven games. Some of those guys can't take that pressure every night.

SI.com: Four years ago you told the New York Post "You got 60 percent of your league on marijuana." Where would you say that figure is at today?

CO: It's probably gone up. You still see guys getting caught with marijuana in their cars and in their homes. It's happening every day. If you only have one test every October, you can clean your system out right before that and start smoking until next August. The test is a joke. And right now the league is a joke because the guys don't respect the league, they don't respect the guys who paved the way for them and they don't respect management. You see guys on the court and they look lost. They can't run an offense. When a time out is called, they don't even know where to go.

SI.com: The NBA shouldn't look like a developmental league, should it?

CO: I don't care if they come out young but whenever they come to the league, they've got to be ready. They've got to understand that it's like the army; you've got to be prepared to fight, to do whatever it takes in your time there. If you're a top-five draft pick, you ought to be good enough to play right away, no matter what team you go to.

SI.com: You played in one NBA Finals and several Eastern Conference finals as a New York Knick. What's wrong with today's Knicks?

CO: I think it's the city. They can't handle the city and the fans don't give them a break. If you're not a tough man, they're going to let you know. And some of them can't handle the pressure. They've got a bunch of guys making good money who can't play together. You might make a lot of money but that doesn't make you a great player.

SI.com: Earlier this season Stephon Marbury declared himself the best point guard in the NBA. Was that an accurate statement?

CO: I like Stephon. He's got the tough mind. I don't think a lot of guys on his team have a tough mind. I hear a lot of talk about how he doesn't make other guys better and that wherever he goes he doesn't win. Steph has to have guys around him who understands the game and can play the game. I think he's just got to realize that he's got to do the stuff the coach wants him to do. When he doesn't, other players will say he's a ball hog. But it's hard to say why the Knicks don't win.

SI.com: The playoffs are almost here. If somebody calls, would you play?

CO: If a playoff team calls? Hell, yeah. I work out everyday. I've worked out for about four weeks straight. I worked out with Jayson Williams recently in Chicago. I'm surprised nobody's picked him up. He's in great shape. Teams say they need help, and there are people out here who can help, yet they all say they don't want to get involved with them.

SI.com: I guess they're concerned about image.

CO: They always say image but then they'll contradict themselves. It's a bunch of bull**** to me.

* sigh * i miss the Oakman.

Oaktree needs to be part of our organization. I think that this dude can be a hell of a coach. If I were isiah, I would have assumed the coaching position and hire assistants like Ewing, Oak, and Lambeer. Those three names represents what the Knicks was once upon of time. Keep Agwire around and have those 3 guys has assistants. Isiah needs a mixture of Knickebockers and bad boys as assistants to really pull N.Y behind him a 100%. He would need to bring in a shooting coach to help our boys become better shooters. Marburry, Crawfford and Ariza need a lot of help...

that interview was funny as h**l! i remembered that he got into an argument with barkley when he was in philly. i remember one time when barkley knocked down ewing and oakley, who was injured with a cast on his arm, came out onto the court to handle business. now, that was the REAL, nba. not many warriors like them left. maybe ben wallace, artest ( without the craziness factored in) or shaq.

Kurt Thomas????????? are you nuts? Kurt is a wimp....Xavier McDaniels, Oak, and Ewing were and will always be hardnose players that we will always remember. Now we have JYD and Malik, we just need to draft us a beast at Center, that is all...

KT used to be before he turned into a perimeter shooting p*ssy

i think diderotn needs things repeated twice in the same thread before he comprehends.

Posted by djsunyc:

isiah needs to take sweetney and make him live with oakley this summer. he will whip fat boy into shape pronto.

Lol! Great idea!!!

Posted by diderotn:

Dude! just mentioning Kurt's name irritates the hell out of me.....that is your boy

Posted by TMS:

KT used to be before he turned into a perimeter shooting p*ssy

i think diderotn needs things repeated twice in the same thread before he comprehends.

now KT's "my boy"...are you sure your name isn't nyu? just checking.