NY Knicks’ rookie Obi Toppin was selected 8th overall this offseason with big expectations. He was an older prospect who was known to be an NBA-ready talent with offensive numbers in college that compared to the likes of Zion Williamson. But the rookie that has caught the heart of New York so far has been Immanuel Quickley, who was the 25th pick of the draft.
This year’s draft process was, for a lack of a better word, highly unorthodox. In what was claimed to be a weak draft class to begin with and there was a severe lack of data/sample size to assess some of the younger talents. College basketball was cut short due to the pandemic and March Madness was canceled. There were no tournament draft stock boosters like Donte DiVencenzo’s in this draft.
To make matters worse, there were the obvious restrictions on in-person workouts, the awkward timing of the draft process because of the NBA season restart in Orlando, along with so many other factors that played out to everyone’s detriment. Needless to say, it was near impossible to make a solid judgment call on these prospects. Needless to say, it was a nightmare for NBA front offices to figure this out.
NY Knicks: Outlook heading into draft night
The NY Knicks’ headed into the 2020 NBA Draft with the 8th pick with a clear need at the point guard position. Obi Toppin, to a surprise, fell to the Knicks at 8. The overall sentiment towards the pick was positive and most of that was due to the negativity around Julius Randle’s performance in the season prior. After Toppin was drafted, many saw Julius Randle as a trading chip waiting to be sent away. We’re now halfway through the season and Julius Randle is an All-star with Obi Toppin playing 12.2 minutes per game. It’s been a strange season for the Knicks but quite the successful one under the guidance of Tom Thibodeau.
While it has been an underwhelming rookie season for Obi Toppin, let’s dive into whether the front office has made the right pick of the draft or not.
NY Knicks: The 2020 Draf
One way to assess the value of the selection is by taking a look at the players drafted after the 8th selection. So let’s take a look at some of the players.
The following are the rest of the players in the lottery drafted after Obi Toppin:
9. Deni Avdija (Washington Wizards)
10. Jalen Smith (Phoenix Suns)
11. Devin Vassell (San Antonio Spurs)
12. Tyrese Haliburton (Sacramento Kings)
13. Kira Lewis jr. (New Orleans Pelicans)
14. Aaron Nesmith (Boston Celtics)
With the exception of Tyrese Haliburton, all the players have been either not given enough minutes to play or have been underperforming expectations. Tyrese Haliburton has been the only player that has exceeded expectations as he is currently averaging 12.2/3.5/5.2 with a WS (Win Shares) of 2.2. The only rookie exceeding Haliburton’s numbers right now is LaMelo Ball who sits at 2.9 WS. Obi Toppin is currently averaging 4.4/2.4/0.5 with a WS of 0.6.
There were some notable contributors after the lottery picks but these prospects were never in question at the 8th pick, to begin with.
15. Cole Anthony (Orland Magic)
16. Isaiah Stewart (Detroit Pistons)
17. Aleksej Pokusevski (OKC Thunder)
19. Saddiq Bey (Detroit Pistons)
25. Immanuel Quickley (New York Knicks)
26. Payton Pritchard (Boston Celtics)
NY Knicks: Current Rookie Ladder
Here is the list of the current Rookie Ladder Standings:
1. Lamelo Ball (Charlotte Hornets)
2. Anthony Edwards (Minnesota Timberwolves)
3. Immanuel Quickley (New York Knicks)
4. Tyrese Haliburton (Sacramento Kings)
5. James Wiseman (Golden State Warriors)
6. Saddiq Bey (Detroit Pistons)
7. Jae’Sean Tate (Houston Rockets)
8. Patrick Williams (Chicago Bulls)
9. Desmond Bane (Memphis Grizzlies)
10. Kenyon Martin Jr (Houston Rockets)
Lamelo Ball, Anthony Edwards, James Wiseman, and Patrick Williams have all been selected earlier than Obi Toppin so they are out of the question. With the exception of Immanuel Quickley, Haliburton, and Desmond Bane, the rest of the rookies on this list are all playing on the top 3 worst teams in the NBA.
A lot of these rookies are also given playing time due to injuries to starters or just the overall given opportunities on a team without much talent. We cannot fully compare the two until Obi Toppin receives the playing time needed to produce starting numbers.
The NY Knicks’ Rotation
The NY Knicks are still in need of a playmaker at the guard position and unless that void is filled, Julius Randle will continue playing heavy minutes under Thibodeau’s offense. The current point guards on the roster are comprised of Derrick Rose, Immanuel Quickley, and Elfrid Payton. While Rose and Quickley have taken the occasional playmaking duties, most of their effectiveness has come from their scoring. Quickley’s assist percentage is 19.6% to his usage rate of 27.8%. Roses’ assist percentage is 32.2% to his usage rate of 24.9%.
Now say the NY Knicks had opted to select Tyrese Haliburton instead. He sits at an assist percentage of 23.8% to his usage rate of 17.1%. Tyrese Haliburton actually has a higher ratio of assist percentage to usage rate than both of the Knick guards. This means that he assisted more while not needing the ball in his hands as much as the other two. The assist ratio of Haliburton is especially impressive as he shares the court with De’Aaron Fox and Buddy Hield.
But even if the Knick’s were to add another playmaker to the mix, that does not guarantee that Thibodeau will make room for Obi Toppin to play. At this point of the season, Julius Randle provides the scoring, playmaking, rebounding, and spacing that are extremely important to the team’s success.
This team’s construct also heavily depends on their ability to defend as the Knicks stand first place in defensive rankings. They are in fact, ahead of last year’s champions, the Los Angeles Lakers. Obi Toppin was not known to be a strong defender in college and he hasn’t shown any significant improvements on that end.
So we come to the question, should the Knicks have taken a chance with Tyrese Haliburton at the 8th pick? Perhaps, but that may mean the NY Knicks opt for a player other than Immanuel Quickley at 25. Obi Toppin still seems like he has a lot of talent and there had been plenty of older rookies that blossomed a few years in (like Pascal Siakam).
But can we call Obi Toppin a bust yet for the Knicks? Time will only tell but from where we stand currently, it is hard to assess Obi without Obi Toppin given a fair chance at playing meaningful minutes. For Toppin to do so on this team, he will have to show Tom Thibodeau that we can keep up with the defensive intensity of the current squad.