New York Knicks’ updated depth chart after Obi Toppin trade
With rumors spanning the course of almost all of last season and this offseason, Obi Toppin has finally been traded to the Pacers. The news did not come as a surprise as not only was he not a good fit with the New York Knicks, but a reported “incident” between Toppin and Tom Thibodeau all but sealed his fate.
Toppin was traded to Indiana for two second-round picks. Fans may not be happy about this return for the former No. 8 overall pick. However, the deal has been done. Now, the Knicks must figure out who will replace the 15.7 minutes per game Toppin took up last season.
As things stand currently, the Knicks’ depth chart looks a bit different after this trade. This will help us determine how the team can best fix their newfound hole.
New York Knicks’ updated depth chart following the Obi Toppin-Pacers trade
PG: Jalen Brunson, Immanuel Quickley, Miles McBride
SG: Quentin Grimes, Josh Hart, Evan Fournier, DaQuan Jeffries (non-guaranteed salary)
SF: RJ Barrett, Josh Hart, Quentin Grimes, Evan Fournier
PF: Julius Randle, Isaiah Roby (non-guaranteed salary)
C: Mitchell Robinson, Isaiah Hartenstein, Jericho Sims (non-guaranteed salary)
As you can see, the Knicks have a very serious hole at power forward. Julius Randle can hold down the majority of minutes, however, he cannot play every minute of every game and this is something the front office knows. This means they will likely be looking at the free agent market to bring a Toppin replacement in.
Whether it be Torrey Craig, or someone else, we’re sure that Leon Rose has some sort of plan in place to create the best roster that he can. The Knicks have the full MLE this offseason, but they don’t currently have much cap flexibility aside from that.
To make things even tougher, the Knicks are also in need of a backup wing/guard to play alongside Quickley. While Donte DiVincenzo has been linked to New York, it’s tough to tell what position the Knicks will focus on.
Fans should have faith in the front office. They likely wouldn’t make a hole on the roster without having a plan in place to fix it. Hopefully, regardless of who they decide to bring in, they are a better fit than Obi Toppin. He may have a ton of upside, but there’s no doubt that he simply wasn’t a good fit with the Knicks.
