Toppin (ankle) is available for Monday's matchup against the Celtics.
As expected, Toppin has been upgraded from questionable to available and will play in the In-Season Tournament quarterfinal matchup versus Boston. Over his last eight appearances, Toppin has averaged 17.6 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.0 blocks in 29.3 minutes per game.
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Pacers' Obi Toppin: Trending toward playing
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Coach Rick Carlisle said he expects Toppin (ankle) to play in Monday's game against the Celtics, Scott Agness of FieldhouseFiles.com reports.
Toppin tweaked his ankle during Saturday's win over Miami and was initially listed as questionable for Monday's matchup. He's trending more toward probable at this point, but he likely won't be officially cleared until closer to the 7:30 p.m. ET tipoff.
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Pacers' Obi Toppin: Questionable to play Monday
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Toppin is questionable for Monday's game against the Celtics with a left ankle sprain.
Toppin logged a full workload in Saturday's win over Miami and finished with 22 points, four blocks, two rebounds, two assists and one steal in 35 minutes, but Indiana head coach Rick Carlisle mentioned after the victory that Toppin had tweaked his ankle at some point during the contest. His status for Monday is uncertain, though the Pacers should have a better idea regarding whether Toppin will be available to play following their morning shootaround. Aaron Nesmith would likely move into the starting lineup at forward if Toppin can't play Monday, and Isaiah Jackson could also benefit from a slight uptick in minutes while filling playing time at center behind starter Myles Turner.
Toppin ended Saturday's 144-129 victory over the Heat with 22 points (7-8 FG, 4-5 3Pt, 4-4 FT), two rebounds, two assists, four blocks and one steal in 35 minutes.
Toppin took the second-fewest shots among Indiana's starters, but he nonetheless finished as the team's second-leading scorer thanks to an ultra-efficient 7-for-8 shooting line. That included a 4-for-5 mark from three-point range, and Toppin has now drained at least three triples in three of his past four games after failing to reach that mark in any of his first 14 contests this season. Perhaps most impressively (and unexpectedly), Toppin tallied four blocked shots Saturday -- he had collected just six swats over 17 games coming into the contest.
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Pacers' Obi Toppin: Hits for 25 in Thursday's loss
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Toppin closed with 25 points (10-15 FG, 3-7 3Pt, 2-5 FT), two rebounds, three assists and one block in 33 minutes during Thursday's 142-132 loss to the Heat.
The 25-year-old forward is emerging as a real asset for the Pacers on the offensive end of the court, although Toppin's defensive limitations still cost him court time on occasion. He's scored at least 15 points in five straight games during which he's played at least 24 minutes, although he's fallen short of that mark in two other contests during that seven-game stretch. With Jalen Smith (knee/heel) sidelined and lacking a firm timeline for his return, Toppin's role in the frontcourt seems secure in the short term.
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Pacers' Obi Toppin: Productive on scoreboard in start
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Toppin ended with 16 points (6-9 FG, 2-5 3Pt, 2-2 FT), three rebounds, one assist and two steals over 36 minutes during Wednesday's 132-131 loss to the Raptors.
Toppin rejoined the starting lineup Wednesday with Aaron Nesmith (wrist) unavailable. He scored in double figures for the fourth time in the past five games and was also productive on the defensive side of the ball with two steals. It's unclear whether Toppin or Nesmith will retain a starting role once Nesmith is back in action, but Toppin was productive in Tuesday's bench appearance and has averaged 16.8 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.2 assists in 28.8 minutes per game over his last five outings.
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Pacers' Obi Toppin: Records 21 points off bench
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Toppin racked up 21 points (9-16 FG, 1-6 3Pt, 2-2 FT), one rebound, six assists, one block and one steal in 34 minutes during Tuesday's 157-152 victory over the Hawks.
Toppin moved to the bench after a subpar effort Sunday against the Magic in which he was held at six points across 16 minutes, but he bounced back admirably here and posted one of his best scoring outputs of the campaign. It's unclear if the move to the bench will be permanent for the power forward, but it will be hard not to give him minutes if he performs like this regularly. Toppin has scored in double figures in three of his last four outings.
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Pacers' Obi Toppin: Moves to bench
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Toppin will move to the bench for Tuesday's game against the Hawks.
The Pacers are throwing Aaron Nesmith into the starting lineup at Toppin's expense, but it's unclear if this is a permanent move. Toppin is coming off a dud against the Magic on Sunday, a game in which he was held to six points in 16 minutes.
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Pacers' Obi Toppin: Best scoring output of season
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Toppin provided 27 points (12-15 FG, 1-3 3Pt, 2-4 FT), six rebounds, one assist and one block across 37 minutes during Tuesday's 132-126 victory over Philadelphia.
Toppin was nothing short of outstanding Tuesday. He surpassed the 20-point mark for the first time in the campaign and was also highly efficient from the field. He missed just three of his shots -- with two of these coming from beyond the arc. Toppin had a rough start to the season, but he seems to be trending in the right direction of late after scoring in double digits in four of his last six outings.
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Pacers' Obi Toppin: Scores season-high 19 points
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Toppin provided 19 points (6-11 FG, 1-3 3Pt, 6-6 FT), two rebounds, one assist and two steals across 27 minutes during Monday's 152-111 win over the Spurs.
Toppin was one of five Pacers to score at least 15 points in Monday's lopsided affair. Interestingly, his three-point production has been non-existent thus far, with Monday snapping a four-game streak with no threes. The 25-year-old hit 34.4 percent of 3.7 threes per game with the Knicks last season.
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Pacers' Obi Toppin: Tallies 11 points
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Toppin ended Saturday's 125-124 loss to the Hornets with 11 points (5-7 FG, 1-2 3Pt) and four rebounds across 26 minutes.
Toppin continues to be a one-dimensional producer for the Pacers, compiling just three assists, four steals and one block through six contests thus far. He was efficient with his scoring Saturday, but skepticism grows on if Toppin can expand as a breakout candidate in a new environment. His next opportunity is Monday against San Antonio.
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Pacers' Obi Toppin: Mediocre in loss
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Toppin closed Monday's 112-105 loss to the Bulls with six points (2-5 FG, 0-2 3Pt, 2-2 FT), eight rebounds and one steal over 24 minutes.
Toppin hasn't delivered any eye-catching stat lines across his first three games with Indiana, but he's still in the early stages of building chemistry with Tyrese Haliburton (ankle). Toppin is averaging just 20.3 minutes per game, which should gradually rise as he gets more comfortable with his new team.
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Pacers' Obi Toppin: Just misses double-double
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Toppin recorded 17 points (6-9 FG, 1-3 3Pt, 4-4 FT), nine rebounds and one assist in 26 minutes during Friday's 109-104 preseason win over the Cavaliers.
Toppin tied with Myles Turner for the most rebounds on the team with nine. After making just five starts for the Knicks last year, Toppin is set to start the regular season as Indiana's starting power forward.
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Pacers' Obi Toppin: Dealt to Indiana
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The Knicks traded Toppin to the Pacers for two future second-round picks Saturday, Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN reports.
Toppin started just five games for New York in 2022-23, as he was stuck behind Julius Randle and Mitchell Robinson in the frontcourt. However, he will likely be competing with rookie Jarace Walker for a starting power forward job in Indiana next year. Last season, Toppin averaged 7.4 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.0 assists in 15.7 minutes across 67 games.
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Knicks' Obi Toppin: Moves back to bench
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Toppin isn't in the starting five for Tuesday's Game 2 versus the Heat.
Julius Randle will replace Toppin in the starting lineup Tuesday after missing Game 1 with an ankle injury. Toppin averaged 8.2 points, 3.4 rebounds, 1.2 steals and 1.0 assists in 17.2 minutes across five games coming off the bench in the Knicks' first-round matchup with the Cavaliers.
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Knicks' Obi Toppin: Solid effort in spot start
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Toppin registered 18 points (7-15 FG, 4-11 3Pt), eight rebounds and one steal in 31 minutes during Sunday's 108-101 loss to the Heat in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
Toppin replaced Julius Randle (ankle) in the starting lineup and ended with a relatively strong line. There is no word on whether Randle will continue to miss time moving forward. However, should that be the case, Toppin figures to feature heavily as the Knicks look to wrestle back the advantage over a dogged Heat outfit.
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Knicks' Obi Toppin: Draws start sans Randle
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Toppin will start Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Heat on Sunday, Fred Katz of The Athletic reports.
Toppin will move into the starting lineup in place of Julius Randle, who's been ruled out after tweaking his ankle during the Knicks' close-out Game 5 win over Cleveland. Through five playoff contests, Toppin has averaged 8.2 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.2 steals in 17.2 minutes per game.
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Knicks' Obi Toppin: On bench for playoffs opener
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Toppin will be on the bench for Game 1 against the Cavaliers on Saturday, Joe Gabriele of the Cavaliers' official site reports.
Toppin moves back to the bench with Julius Randle (ankle) available and ready to start. Toppin saw extended minutes as Randle's replacement in the final five games of the regular season and averaged 21.8 points with 3.2 rebounds and 3.4 assists per contest, but he's slated to see a lesser role in the second unit. He averaged just 6.3 points and 2.8 rebounds across 62 bench appearances during the regular season.
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Knicks' Obi Toppin: Erupts for 34 in Sunday's loss
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Toppin had 34 points (13-23 FG, 5-10 3Pt, 3-3 FT), seven rebounds, five assists and two steals across 37 minutes during Sunday's 141-136 loss to Indiana.
Making his fifth straight start, Toppin set a season high with 34 points during the Knicks' regular-season finale. The third-year forward has displayed the upside that made him the eighth overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft over the last couple weeks, averaging 21.8 points during his latest starting stint, and he might remain in the starting five to begin the Knicks' first-round series against the Cavaliers if Julius Randle (ankle) isn't yet 100 percent.
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Knicks' Obi Toppin: Tops 30 points for first time
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Toppin chipped in 32 points (11-18 FG, 5-12 3Pt, 5-5 FT), six assists, three rebounds and one steal across 43 minutes during Wednesday's 138-129 victory over the Pacers.
Toppin starred in the final week of the 2021-22 regular season with 42- and 35-point performances in the Knicks' last two games, and he's making a run at repeating that trend in 2022-23. After scoring a season-high 21 points in Sunday's win over the Wizards, Toppin was able to raise his production higher while taking on a shorthanded Pacers roster. The 25-year-old should continue to start at power forward over the Knicks' final two games of the regular season while Julius Randle (ankle) is sidelined, though he could lose out on at least a few shot attempts if distributor Jalen Brunson (hand) misses additional time. Regardless, Toppin's minutes appear to be secure sans Randle, making him a strong streaming option no matter who else is available for the Knicks.
