The first draft pick of the Leon Rose era with the Knicks will find themselves on the other side in the second round of the playoffs.
Former lottery pick Obi Toppin became a steady contributor in his first season with the Pacers, and he posted a playoff career-high 21 points off the bench in their clinching game Thursday night against the Bucks.
The Brooklyn native’s return to the Garden as a second-round opponent starting in Monday’s Game 1 is among several intriguing storylines after the Knicks knocked off the 76ers in the first round.
“I feel like I’m going to have the same mentality that I had before this series,” Toppin said Thursday night, before it was determined that the Knicks would be his team’s next playoff opponent. “No matter who’s in front of us, we’re bound by whatever the coaches tell us to do offensively and defensively, whether it’s the Knicks, the Bucks, whoever we’re playing.”
Toppin, Dayton’s eighth overall pick in the 2020 draft, played just 14.7 minutes per game in three seasons with the Knicks when he was mostly stuck 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 during the second round of the playoffs against Miami last year.
Toppin was traded to the Pacers for two second-round picks in July, and the pending restricted free agent appeared in all 82 games (28 starts) for them this season with career highs in minutes (21.1 per game ), in points (10.3), rebounds (3.9), field goal percentage (57.3) and 3-point percentage (40.3).
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Pacers coach Rick Carlisle said Toppin had “a phenomenal game” in Thursday’s final victory over the Bucks, with 21 points on 8-of-15 shooting, eight rebounds and one blocked shot in 24 minutes.
“I thought Obi came in and played with incredible energy…the energy from our bench flowed throughout the game,” All-Star guard Tyrese Haliburton said after the game.
Toppin’s previous playoff record was the 18 points he scored while Randle was out with an ankle injury in the opener against the Heat last April.
“I just tell (Topin) that in the open court, there’s not a lot of guys in the NBA that can really challenge him at the rim,” veteran teammate TJ McConnell said. “When he runs like he does, he takes our group to another level. He’s a special player, his ability to shoot the ball and get out and run and create mismatches in transition and catch lobs.
Toppin’s 26-year-old younger brother, Jacob, 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, the day the Knicks were shorthanded due to trading RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley to Toronto for OG Anunoby and Precious Achiuwa.
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