The No. 1 draft pick from the Leon Rose-era Knicks will be on the other side in the second round of the playoffs.
Former lottery pick Obi Toppin has been a regular contributor since his first season with the Pacers, scoring a postseason career-high 21 points off the bench in Thursday night’s clincher Game 6 against the Bucks.
The Brooklyn native’s return to the Garden as a second-round opponent after Monday’s Game 1 is thought to be one of several interesting storylines after the Knicks eliminated the 76ers in the opening round. It will be done.
“We’re going to go into this series with the same mentality we had going into this series,” Toppin said Thursday night before the team’s next postseason opponent was decided to be the Knicks. “No matter who’s in front of us, whether it’s the Knicks or the Bucks, no matter who the opponent is, we’re bound to everything that our coaches tell us to do offensively and defensively. .”
Selected eighth overall by Dayton in the 2020 draft, Toppin played just 14.7 minutes per game in three seasons with the Knicks, mostly behind All-Star forward Julius Randle.
The 6-foot-9 Toppin, who won the 2022 Slam Dunk Contest, got into a shouting match with Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau in the second round of the playoffs against Miami last year.
Toppin was traded to the Pacers in July for two second-round picks, and the pending restricted free agent played in all 82 games (28 starts) for the Pacers this season. Career-highs in minutes (21.1 per game), points (10.3), rebounds (3.9), field goal percentage (57.3), and 3-point percentage (40.3).
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Pacers manager Rick Carlisle said Toppin had 21 points on 8-of-15 shooting, eight rebounds and one blocked shot in 24 minutes against the Bucks on Thursday, calling it a “tremendous game.” ” he said.
All-Star guard Tyrese Haliburton said after the game, “I thought Obi came in and played with unbelievable energy…The energy on our bench flowed throughout the game.”
Toppin’s previous highest playoff score was the 18 points he scored in Game 1 against the Heat last April when Randle was out with an ankle injury.
“Let me just say [Toppin] “In the open floor, there aren’t many guys in the NBA that can really challenge him at the rim,” veteran teammate TJ McConnell said. “When he’s running his run, he takes our group to another level. He’s a special player, shooting the ball, jumping out and running, making mismatches in transition. He has the ability to create and catch lobs.”
Toppin’s younger brother, Jacob, 26, is on the Knicks’ roster but did not play in the first round.
They shared the court for the first time in the NBA on Dec. 30 in Indianapolis, a day when the Knicks were shorthanded after sending RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley to Toronto in a trade for OG Anunoby and Precious Achiuwa. did.
