Latest news with #toughness
Yahoo
18-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
"He don't want none of this here smoke!" - Scottie Pippen recalls how Suge Knight backed down from Charles Oakley
"He don't want none of this here smoke!" - Scottie Pippen recalls how Suge Knight backed down from Charles Oakley originally appeared on Basketball Network. Scottie Pippen knew Charles Oakley's toughness wasn't just for show. "Oak" carried the same edge everywhere, so much so that even Suge Knight, the feared music executive known for intimidation, kept his distance. "I'm sitting in the middle of the party and all of a sudden, I look up and I'm seeing all these people get pushed around," the Chicago Bulls great recalled in an appearance on the "Chopping It Up With Oakley" podcast (H/T: Hiphop DX). "So Oak looks and said, 'That's Suge Knight. He don't want none of this here smoke! I had beef with him the other night." "It was like a storm going on over there. Wasn't nobody moving where we were standing, and I'm like, 'Wow.' And it was basically Suge Knight walked around Oakley like that," added Pippen. Knight wasn't a small guy by any means. He was a former football player, standing 6'2" and weighing 265 pounds, at least in his younger days. That said, "Oak Tree" is an athletically built 6'9" and 230-pound power forward who also happens to be best friends with the most recognizable athlete on the planet, Michael Jordan. Suge may have gang ties, but Oakley isn't one to back down. When two bullies meet Pippen joined Oakley and co-host Sasha del Valle on episode 8 of "Chopping It Up," where the conversation naturally turned to their NBA days, including the season they shared as teammates in Chicago. Even after the Bulls traded Oakley to the Knicks for Bill Cartwright, he and Pippen stayed close. So it wasn't unusual to see them out together, even at nightclubs, despite playing on different teams. According to Scottie, he saw Charles check Suge after Oak had already gotten into it with someone whom nobody in Miami wanted to mess with. "I look up. I'm seeing all these people. Probably three, four feet from me. They gettin' pushed around, knocked around. Me and Oak standing there, you know, we both of stature so we could see everything. People could see us," Pippen continued. At that point, Suge and his entourage made their way around a sea of people, only to come face to face with Oakley. That's when Oak allegedly checked Knight, who then avoided the basketball player all evening. Some might question how much of the story actually happened that way. After all, Knight wasn't just any partygoer. He co-founded Death Row Records and had serious pull in Los Angeles at the time, so why would he back down from a random basketball player? Still, whether every detail is accurate or not, the story fits with Oakley's reputation. These kinds of run-ins weren't out of character, as he had altercations with just about anyone who rubbed him the wrong way, on or off the court. Oak's beefs Oakley was one of the most notorious enforcers in the NBA during the 1980s and 1990s. He was a rugged defender and a fearless rebounder, leading the Association in defensive rebounds per game in back-to-back seasons (1986-87 and 1987-88). With his brash persona and blunt approach, he had a way of getting under people's skin. Or maybe they got under his, and Oakley only knew one way to respond. Take, for instance, the time he nearly squared off with Judge Greg Mathis. According to Oakley's own account on GQ, a confrontation at Derrick Coleman's restaurant escalated when the judge came over to settle his tab in a way Oakley felt was disrespectful. As always, Oakley didn't back down. Instead, he physically pushed Mathis "real hard," just to remind him that even off-court, Oak's line wasn't one to cross. "He said, "I'mma make these NBA boys pay for it." He was out of order. He's gonna tell me, "I'm gonna call my boys [on you]." He said, "This my city!" I don't care whose city it is. You don't tell anybody that you got some boys to come get me. He was dead wrong. It got kinda crazy," Oakley said, describing the moment Mathis threatened him. Aside from Judge Mathis, Oakley admitted he "slapped the sh-t" out of several former NBA players over the years. Among them: Charles Barkley, for taking shots at the Knicks during the 1998 lockout; Jeff McInnis, for what Oakley saw as blatant disrespect; and Tyrone Hill, for an unpaid $20,000 debt. Unsurprisingly, the man got more beef than a Texas cookout. Same ol' Oak They say a leopard cannot change its stripes, and that's precisely how Oak is. Whether it was Suge at a party, Judge Mathis in a restaurant, or Madison Square Garden security personnel, the rules remained the same: show respect or face the consequences. Even in retirement, his presence still carries weight. Oakley doesn't need to exaggerate or remind people who he was, as the stories, like the one Pippen recalled, do it for him. And in a league that has grown increasingly polished and image-conscious, there's something about Oakley's raw consistency that makes him stand out even story was originally reported by Basketball Network on Jul 16, 2025, where it first appeared.
Yahoo
06-07-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Non-QB topics to ponder a month from training camp
BEREA — There's roughly a month to go until the Browns get back on the field for the start of training camp. That's another month to ponder the questions that surround the team as it tries to climb back from the 3-14 disaster that was the 2024 season. That disaster has created plenty of questions for the Browns. Advertisement The obvious one is about the quarterback position. However, that question is so obvious it's not going to be addressed here. Instead, let's take a look at three questions that will hover over the Browns until they get into training camp. Tough talk, or are Browns truly committed to toughness? Cleveland Browns general manager Andrew Berry, left, and coach Kevin Stefanski watch as wide receiver Gage Larvadain practices with the special teams during a practice at the team's training facility May 28, 2025, in Berea, Ohio. A running theme from both coaches and some of the Browns' most prominent veterans has centered around a root cause for the 2024 record. Distilled down to the simplest term, it is the team's toughness. Or, lack thereof. Essentially, if you listen to players like left guard Joel Bitonio, when the going got tough last season, a whole lot of players didn't respond well at all. That, in his own words, turned into a "snowball" that rolled over any hopes of a good season. Advertisement The talk during the offseason program was about a renewed dedication to getting tougher, both physically and mentally. They talked about tougher workouts and more accountability. Training camp will show whether that was just tough talk, or if there really is a commitment to change. One way will come in the intensity of the training camp itself, which has been lacking in recent Browns camps compared to other teams. More help on the way for Browns wide receiving corps? The only veteran addition made to the Browns wide receiving corps was DeAndre Carter, a player whose biggest role may come in the return game, and Diontae Johnson, who bounced around three different teams last year. The only help in terms of rookies added came from undrafted free agents or tryout players who managed to stick. Advertisement So the question remains about the depth after Jerry Jeudy, who's coming off a Pro Bowl, record-setting season. Are the Browns content with what they have right now and seeing who rises to the top during training camp, or will they still bring in someone else — like maybe Keenan Allen? There's also the third path, which calls for one of the recent wide receivers drafted by the team to make a big jump. That group most notably includes 2023 third-round pick Cedric Tillman and 2024 fifth-round pick Jamari Thrash. Whichever path it comes from, it has to come sooner rather than later. It doesn't matter who the quarterback ends up being if they don't have a reliable group of wide receivers to target. Would Browns make a deal to help fill one of their position gaps? Cleveland Browns cornerback Greg Newsome II (0) eyes down quarterback Dillon Gabriel (5) during practice at minicamp June 10, 2025, in Berea, Ohio. This is almost a secondary question to the previous one. However, it could have implications at other spots on the roster that need boosting as well. Advertisement The most obvious answer for a player the Browns could try to trade to reap another piece in return is cornerback Greg Newsome II. Of course, Newsome's been on the "Browns to watch potentially get traded" list for at least two seasons and remains here, so maybe it's time to move along. There are also a couple of older defensive linemen who could end up moving. Those decisions, though, wouldn't be so much about getting a player back as much as getting a player out of the way so a younger player can get more reps. This question is sort of an evergreen one. It could get answered even during this break, or not until the Browns see how the situation looks once they get going in the preseason. Chris Easterling can be reached at ceasterling@ Read more about the Browns at Follow him on X at @ceasterlingABJ This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Browns questions: Is the team tough enough? Will they add another WR?
