NY Knicks: Player grades for scorching hot month of April
By Adam Kester
Obi Toppin has looked a lot more confident in April.. F. New York Knicks. OBI TOPPIN. B
NY Knicks: Obi Toppin is starting to get in a groove
It’s been a lot of tough sledding for the 8th overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft. Obi Toppin had high expectations heading into the season but was put into a tough situation.
The fit of Obi Toppin and the NY Knicks doesn’t make a ton of sense. From the Knicks’ slower-paced half-court offense, to Julius Randle now being the star player and playing the same position as Toppin, a lot of the elements surrounding the 23-year-old haven’t been in his favor.
Toppin will rarely see over 10 minutes per game, but he’s still a more consistent part of Tom Thibodeau’s rotation than other young homegrown picks Kevin Knox and Frank Ntilikina. Even when he did play earlier in the year, it was hard to even detect his “strengths on the court”. and he frequently looked lost in teh NBA. That’s started to change towards the end of the season.
Obi. Will. Not. Be. Denied! pic.twitter.com/3hKwMvSQvx
— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) April 29, 2021
Toppin has started to assert himself in the paint more. Whether it’s strong finishes or fighting for offensive rebounds – There has definitely been a difference in his mentality on the court. He’s putting the ball on the court and being decisive with it.
Toppin still has a lot more work to do on defense. He still shot just 28.6% from 3 in April on mostly all open catch & shoot looks, so we need to see more consistent spot-up shooting as well.
Still, it’s nice to see Obi Toppin contributing with his limited minutes because that’s all he needs to do for now. Keep running with the 2nd unit, catch those alley-oops, and hit those open 3s. Let’s see if he can keep it going on the NY Knicks’ upcoming West Coast road trip.