Trey of triples for Toppin in NBA debut

Obi Toppin, the 2019-20 college basketball player of the year, made his NBA debut for the New York Knicks Wednesday night. Photo courtesy of NBAE via Getty Images.

Peter Burtnett
Sports Editor

Making his regular season NBA debut for the New York Knicks, former University of Dayton men’s basketball stand-out Obi Toppin knocked down three 3-pointers in a 121-107 loss to the Indiana Pacers Wednesday night.

Knocking down a corner three with 5:39 left in the second quarter, the No. 8 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft gave the Knicks a 48-47 lead. Toppin would go on to make a pair of threes, but the Knicks couldn’t keep up with the Pacers, dropping their season opener.

In 24 minutes of action off the bench, Toppin was 3-12 from the field, going 3-7 from deep. He added 1 assist (a dime to R.J. Barrett in transition), 3 rebounds, and 2 blocks, finishing at minus-4 for the game.

Averaging 7.5 points, 6 rebounds, and 1.5 assists in 25.5 minutes per game in the Knicks’ four preseason games, Toppin now has an official NBA on his resume, and has a chance to take what he was able to achieve for the Flyers last year to the next level.