Obi Toppin

Dayton | PF/C | Redshirt Sophomore

Height: 6'9"
Weight: 220
Wingspan: 7'2"

Shades of: Carlos Boozer, Drew Gooden

Projected Draft Range: 5-10
Big Board Ranking: N/A

Selling Points:

Toppin is an uber-efficient finisher (69.8% from two) with explosive leaping ability around the rim. Toppin is an excellent two-foot leaper who gets off the ground quickly and provides great vertical spacing both on the move and from a standstill. Toppin looks the part of a future dunk contest participant with the creativity and ferocity in which throws it down with. With his vertical reach and cutting instincts, particularly along the baseline, Toppin is a constant lob threat. Toppin is a fluid athlete in transition who runs the floor very well and does a great job of filling lanes. Although not featured in the pick and roll as much as what he should have been, Toppin should develop into an effective roll man with his touch on the move and high-flying antics on the roll. 

Continuing on the topic of Toppin's two-point efficiency, Toppin has a soft touch around the rim. Toppin is able to use his fluidity and straight-line speed to get to the rim where he is a soft finisher off of one leg for a big. There is some potential for him as a small-ball five who can take opposing bigs off the dribble. As a post player Toppin has a not-so traditional post hook of sorts which he is quite efficient in getting off over either shoulder and is proficient at similar lay-ins from the low post. Along the baseline Toppin loves to dropstep his way to the rim out of the post and finish aggressively. 

Toppin has shown to be a solid shooter in catch and shoot situations as he converted on 39.0% albeit on just 2.6 attempts per game. While never likely to be a high-volume three-point shooter in the frontcourt, Toppin's capabilities as a catch and shoot big could be best utilised in the pick and pop. Toppin's ability to quickly set his feet and be an off-the-dribble threat on opposing bigs could be an interesting facet of his game if used in pick and pop action more often. 

Toppin is one of the better passing bigmen prospects in this class with a very natural feel for keeping the ball moving. Having played guard in highschool before his growthspurt, Toppin has a great feel for finding open teammates. He also is very comfortable leading the break and pushing the ball ahead. While Toppin didn't see a whole lot of action making decisions out of the short roll, his ability to find shooters and cutters from the high and low post and to make plays in the middle of the court are promising towards his short roll potential. 


Turnoffs:

Toppin is one of the worst, if not the worst, defenders in the 2020 draft among forwards and bigs. Toppin is a lost cause defending on the perimeter as he often finds himself caught off-balance due to his heavy-footing, poor lateral quickness and awful footwork. On closeouts, he consistently overextends and takes himself out of the play as he lacks the turnaround speed to recover. Toppin looks lost defending in space and lacks any idea of where he should be positioned relative to the ball or even where his defensive assignment is. With a 7'2" wingspan and a quick burst off the ground, although a pipedream, Toppin has the potential to be a great weakside shot blocker. However, his lack of awareness and poor defensive discipline negates any physical advantages he might have. Toppin does a poor job of rotating and is often out of position and slow to read the situation. This poor defensive discipline is best displayed in his tendencies to unnecessarily reach when on-ball and his absolute over-eagerness to block any potential shot attempt which usually results in him falling for obvious pump fakes. 

Toppin is a relatively poor rebounder considering his athletic tools. Toppin doesn't put a great deal of effort into rebounding the ball and often waits around for the ball to fall to him rather than using his reach and quick bounce to secure the rebound. He also doesn't look to box out or put a body on players trying to crash the offensive glass. On the defensive end, Toppin easily gets pushed out of position and often places himself out of position to help rebound the ball due to his over-eagerness as a shot blocker. 

At 22 years old, Toppin is old for a sophomore and may have less room for further growth than initially expected. However, only time will tell on this one. 


NBA Outlook:

Given reasonable playing time, Toppin should be a solid contender for the Rookie of the Year award due to his offensive maturity and projected production straight off the bat. On a rookie deal with a likely non-competitive organisation, Toppin's defensive deficiencies may not limit the playing time he receives. However, this could become a concern later in his career. Assuming he remains a negative on the defensive end of the court, Toppin could become more accustomed to an instant offense sixth man role off the bench. 

Despite being an older prospect relative to his college class, Toppin's status as a late bloomer could pan out in his favour as there could be further unexpected late year-to-year progression set out for him down-the-line which we've seen in prospects such as Pascal Siakam.