Getty New York's Obi Toppin Knicks looks on during a game against the Minnesota Timberwolves at Madison Square Garden on February 21, 2021 in New York City.
After years of wallowing in the doldrums of the Eastern Conference, the Knicks appear to be back. Entering Friday, New York stood in fourth place with a 35-28 record. And with only nine games left in the regular season, the Knicks are on the cusp of their first winning season since 2012-13.
The Knicks’ resurgence has come thanks in large part to the emergence of Julius Randle as a star. The 26-year-old is averaging 24.1 points, 10.4 rebounds and 5.9 assists per game this season, well above his career averages in each respective category.
But Randle’s high-volume usage has meant less opportunity for a younger Knicks player who plays the same position.
Will Knicks look to trade Obi Toppin during offseason?
Randle is averaging a league-leading 37.5 minutes per game this season. Obi Toppin, a power forward like Randle, is playing only 11 minutes per game. The eighth overall pick in this year’s draft, Toppin isn’t exactly making the most of his limited court time, either; he’s averaging only 4.0 points, 2.2 rebounds and 0.5 assists.
Quite simply, there aren’t enough minutes to go around at the position when it comes to Toppin — especially as it relates to his development in the NBA. An assistant general manager even recently told Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer that Toppin should be on his way out soon.
“They’re gonna have to trade Obi this summer,” said the assistant GM, who Fischer didn’t name. “You can’t really play him and Randle together. There’s no runway for him to be successful there.”
Fisher elaborated more on Toppin and the Knicks in his April 26 story for Bleacher Report:
The Knicks were long considered Toppin’s likely landing spot at No. 8 in the 2020 draft, largely credited by many around the league to yet another CAA-New York connection. But the combination of Randle’s star turn plus Thibodeau’s allergy to playing rookies bigger minutes has left Toppin with limited opportunities to develop this season. His own struggles with injury have also played a notable factor.
If the Knicks move their two first-rounders and Toppin to jump up in the draft, that would signal a continuation of this recently measured approach. Perhaps they’ll continue adding placeholder one-year salaries while waiting for the star-rich 2022 free agency class.
Toppin Expresses Confidence in Himself
For what it’s worth, Toppin said his confidence is continuing to grow with the Knicks. A Brooklyn native who played collegiately at Dayton, Toppin is averaging only 9.8 minutes over the Knicks’ last three games, but he’s been more efficient with his time on the court, averaging 6.3 points on 57.1 percent shooting from the field and 50 percent shooting from 3-point range over that span.
“I just felt like my team has a lot of confidence in me. I’m starting to have a lot more confidence in myself. I’m just going out there and playing basketball,” Toppin said after practice Tuesday, according to The New York Post. “I’m putting in the work every single day, and I have people around me that are pushing me to be better every single day. So I’m going to continue to work hard and learn every day and get better.”
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