Entertainment Sports Charles Oakley Reflects on Dancing with the Stars Elimination: 'We Put Up a Fight' Charles Oakley and his partner, Emma Slater, were the first pair to be eliminated this season By Ally Mauch Published on September 23, 2020 10:30AM EDT Photo: Laretta Houston/ABC Charles Oakley is reflecting on his elimination from Dancing With the Stars last night. The NBA star, 56, appeared on Good Morning America Wednesday alongside his dance partner, Emma Slater, and shared that though they were the first pair to go, they “put up a fight.” “That’s all we wanted to do, put up a fight,” Oakley told GMA’s Michael Strahan. “Somebody’s got to win, somebody’s got to lose.” He continued, “It's business. You go and put your effort and your heart to it, and sometimes like in a football game or a basketball game, you got to score a lot of points to win and we didn't score no points. I'm just glad I had a chance to come on the show.” Oakley and Tiger King’s Carole Baskin were in the bottom two during Tuesday night’s first elimination on the show. Judges Bruno Tonioli, Carrie Ann Inaba and Derek Hough had to save one pair to keep them in the competition. From left: Carole Baskin and Pasha Pashkov; Tyra Banks; and Charles Oakley and Emma Slater. ABC Charles Oakley Is the First Contestant to Be Eliminated on DWTS Season 29 "Again, it is going to be up to the judges to save one of these couples and keep them in the competition. If two of the judges are divided, the third will cast the deciding vote," host Tyra Banks explained. Inaba chose to save Baskin while Tonioli split the vote by choosing to keep Oakley in the competition. Breaking the tie was Hough, who decided that he was going to save Baskin and Pashkov, sending Oakley and Slater home. The former Washington Wizards player admitted that he made mistakes during his first dance last week, but was proud of his last performance on Tuesday. RELATED VIDEO: Tyra Banks On What Changes Fans Will See on DWTS: 'You Will See Togetherness' in an Unexpected Way “I think in the first week they caught me off guard a little bit,” Oakley said. “I know I had some mistakes in the first week but last night I thought I was 10 out of 10.” Slater said working with Oakley was “fabulous,” and shared that she would miss rehearsals with him. "Our rehearsals go so fast because he's always early," she said. "Everything I say he never questions. He's so positive and so optimistic and that's what I love about him. He kind of reinforces that in me, so I had the best season." Dancing with the Stars airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.