Kevin Willis scored 19 points in place of Oakley, who will also miss road games against the Utah Jazz and Portland Trail Blazers next Tuesday and Wednesday. When accosted by the gaggle of reporters on hand, Oakley refused to discuss the incident. "We talked to the guys and said we don't want ever to retaliate, which is tough to do in certain situations." "We're not talking about the most mature group of people in the world when you talk about pro athletes, so it could have been over anything. "I just saw the aftermath of it, so who knows. "It was a single hit," Clippers head coach Alvin Gentry explained. "I didn't see what happened, I was in the locker-room when it happened." "I thought it was a little severe," Raptors head coach Lenny Wilkens said of the suspension. "Jeff tried two or three times to get back at him, but players and coaches held him back." He passed by Jeff McInnis, who was sitting on the bench, and socked him," recounted Orange County Register sportswriter Art Thompson. Oakley, who is no stranger to controversy, smacked McInnis, who was so livid that he had to be restrained. RELATED ITEM: Raptors extended by Clippers The Clippers had concluded practice and were milling about with the media when the Raptors emerged to begin their workout. Oakley, 36, was suspended three games without pay and fined $15,000 US for punching Clippers guard Jeff McInnis between the morning shootarounds. He does all the little things to help your team win.The Toronto Raptors, 104-95 overtime victors over the Los Angeles Clippers, expected to play without Vince Carter. He should be the role player of the year. "Then, when you play with him, you realize, yes, he is. "Before we played for the same team, I didn't like him-I thought he was dirty," Rivers says. Rivers also says Oakley is the teammate he'd most like to have. "We wanted him to do one of those crazy behind-the-back things in the first quarter to get it out of his system." "We used to get nervous when it got to the fourth quarter of a close game and Oak hadn't thrown one yet," says Orlando coach Doc Rivers, a former teammate. He's a good shooter who sometimes grows too fond of his perimeter jumper, and his team can always count on one full-court baseball pass per game ending up in the second balcony. He drove coach Doug Collins to distraction on his first Bulls tour with demands that Michael Jordan pass the ball more. ![]() Oakley is fond of driving, owns two car washes and spends his summers motoring around the country in a specially equipped SUV. Oakley, who has the NBA's biggest collection of pastel-colored suits, isn't one to look through rose-colored glasses. You don't have to do everything right, but at least look professional." ![]() And you look at a guy making $100 million who looks like the next guy walking down the street. They have athletic ability, but they don't know the game. Dunking, tattoos, earrings, sagging jeans. "I don't think fans get their money's worth. "It's a hype game, all about marketing," Oakley says of the league that has made him a millionaire. He emboldened his teammates against the Knicks, noting, "We're going into the OK Corral with our guns loaded." He challenged Raptors coach Lenny Wilkens, the winningest coach in NBA history and a Hall of Famer, to work harder.
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