TOPP' OF THE HEAP
Obi working hard to become difference-maker for Knicks
Obi Toppin’s sluggish start motivated him. His strong finish encouraged him.
Both were reasons the Knicks forward’s summer included almost daily trips to the MSG Training Facility for workouts with fellow second-year player Immanuel Quickley.
“Coming in here, especially coming off last year, I knew I had to improve a lot,” the 6-foot-9 Toppin said Wednesday. “So, coming in here every single day this summer, that was my motivation. Come in and just be better than what you were last year.”
The eighth-overall pick in the 2020 draft, Toppin was the Knicks rookie expected to make an immediate impact. Instead, it was Quickley. Toppin started poorly, frequently getting pulled after mistakes and spending the majority of games on the bench. He scored in double figures just three times, and in the 62 games he played during the regular season, received 15 minutes or more just 14 times.
It didn’t get him down, though. Tom Thibodeau noticed it didn’t alter his work ethic, which impressed the demanding head coach. Toppin used it to push himself, to avoid giving Thibodeau reasons to yank him.
“I always trust his judgment. He’s a great coach for a reason and I believe in everything he does,” Toppin said. “So, he was doing it for a reason.”
“That’s why I went into the summer working really hard,” the former college basketball National Player of the Year added.
That’s not to say his rookie year was a complete loss. He got better as the season went on, and contributed in a positive way in the playoffs, averaging 6.4 points in 13.1 minutes per game. There were a few highlight-reel dunks, and even chants of “Obi, Obi, Obi,” for the Brooklyn native.
“It was amazing. I grew up a Knicks fan. My grandfather had season tickets all his life,” he said. “To have that opportunity to be on the court — I’ve been to Knicks games — but to have that opportunity to be on the court and hear that while being on the court, it was crazy.”
Before the playoffs, Thibodeau
noticed improvements Toppin was starting to make. He didn’t just talk about what he was doing wrong — he followed it up by working on it and addressing criticism. He began producing more positive moments than negative ones when called upon, and followed that up in the offseason by making good on his promises to be better. He performed well in the NBA summer league, averaging 21 points and 8.3 rebounds and was named to the first team.
“For me, it’s more of watching the actions. Because oftentimes you get people who will say all the right things and do none of them,” Thibodeau said. “The actions tell me how important it is to him and he’s done all the right things. I think his actions reflect his priority. So I knew he was very committed to improve.”
If Toppin can continue taking steps forward, he could help limit the load on star forward Julius Randle. A year ago, Randle led the NBA in total minutes, averaging 37.4 minutes, and missing just one game. It seems unlikely the Knicks will pair the two together much, since it would leave them without a true rim protector, although Thibodeau didn’t dismiss the possibility.
“We’ll get a look at it,” he said. “It wasn’t very effective last year, but the one thing about both guys: Obi, I think, is a lot better than he was a year ago. Julius continues to get better and better so we’ll see how it unfolds.”
It was a no-brainer for Toppin, a gym rat, to put in extra work during the offseason. Nobody had to suggest it to him. His rookie season didn’t go as planned, and the only way to make sure his second season went better was to work at it. He hates sitting at home, anyway, and he’s not a beach guy.
“No. I don’t like the sand between my toes,” he said with a smile. “I wear like two socks.”