nycericanguy wrote:

Knixkik wrote:Poor Toppin. 11 mins tonight. 0 points or rebounds. Stuck behind Siakam, Jalen smith, plus their lottery pick Walker will get his chances. At least on the Knicks Toppin had backup PF minutes to himself. Not sure I see a future for Toppin in Indy despite being the perfect spot originally.

the writing was on the wall when he was only playing 23mpg as a starter and got moved to the bench on a team that really was thin at PF and Jalen Smith was hurt.

he's an enigma, the scoring numbers look good, he's even hitting some 3's this season, but he's lacking in alot of areas.

It was a B2B and he was questionable with a calf strain going in plus there is a lot of writing on that wall. NeSmith is averaging 25 mins a night as a starter, Smith is averaging 20 since swapping with Obi, Turner averages 26 as a starter, and Nemhard is averaging 20 as a starter. Btw the Pacers have 8 guys averaging double figures (7 is the most any team has finished a season with), Toppin's mins haven't decreased since the lineup change, and he played 25 mins last night. The Pacers play a lot of guys. He's still going to play and contribute.

Anyway, he is getting an opportunity and would get more opportunities if he was better but I wouldn't say the Pacers were ever the perfect fit. He builds out their strengths. Bruce Brown builds out ours too. We should probably get a player who can shoot though. He hasn't had a "break out" year but he's been good and he helps the Pacers. The same can be said for NeSmith and Smith who were both buried by the teams that drafted them. So far this season the Smith/Toppin combo is contributing 22 points a night on 14 shots while shooting around 60% from the field and 45% from 3 in 40 minutes night. The Pacers jumped at the chance to get a name player. They also have beat expectations and gotten great production from the PF spot.

VDesai wrote:Obi at 58% from the field and 41% from 3 on higher volume is pretty good. Starting to think his role is an "energy" role and he probably never starts due to his tweener size/mediocre D. His ability to run the break and finish with a flourish can help teams change the pace/momentum of a game though. There's value in what he brings, but maybe he's just never gonna be a starter. The path he would need to follow offensively would be someone like Miles Bridges and I don't see him at that level.

And unfortunately, that type of guy is pretty easy to find in the league, and they go for less than the MLE and are typically 7th or 8th guys on a good roster team.

VDesai wrote:Obi at 58% from the field and 41% from 3 on higher volume is pretty good. Starting to think his role is an "energy" role and he probably never starts due to his tweener size/mediocre D. His ability to run the break and finish with a flourish can help teams change the pace/momentum of a game though. There's value in what he brings, but maybe he's just never gonna be a starter. The path he would need to follow offensively would be someone like Miles Bridges and I don't see him at that level.

That's a pretty good comparison IMO. I think his strengths could overshadow his weaknesses enough for him to be a strong starter but he needs to be less passive. Bridges doesn't have a great bag but he imposes himself more. Obi looks for his shot A LOT less if he misses his first two attempts and a lot more if he makes a couple or the ball comes his way early. For an offense first player that is a problem. He's never going to be a great defender but I think he is learning how to mix it up. This season has been good for him on that end and I think there is still some room for growth. The offense needs to overshadow the defensive limitations though. He's super efficient. His cutting and decision-making are great for ball movement and spacing but he has awful stretches and even when good rarely imposes himself on the game in a way that maximizes his production. You give him 30-plus minutes and let him screen a decent amount he'll get you a super efficient 16-20 but he's not going to get you a slightly less efficient 24-30 enough even if you really need it. He needs to pump his own usage to stand out more.

VDesai wrote:Obi at 58% from the field and 41% from 3 on higher volume is pretty good. Starting to think his role is an "energy" role and he probably never starts due to his tweener size/mediocre D. His ability to run the break and finish with a flourish can help teams change the pace/momentum of a game though. There's value in what he brings, but maybe he's just never gonna be a starter. The path he would need to follow offensively would be someone like Miles Bridges and I don't see him at that level.

Checked out some of the Pacers game last night. I was surprised to see Obi out there in crunch time. Pacers had 3 forwards on the floor. Maybe it was just the match ups with the Suns. Obi was grabbing all of the defensive rebounds so maybe he way playing C? He did play 26 minutes even with the addition of Siakam

Chandler wrote:

Rookie wrote:

VDesai wrote:Obi at 58% from the field and 41% from 3 on higher volume is pretty good. Starting to think his role is an "energy" role and he probably never starts due to his tweener size/mediocre D. His ability to run the break and finish with a flourish can help teams change the pace/momentum of a game though. There's value in what he brings, but maybe he's just never gonna be a starter. The path he would need to follow offensively would be someone like Miles Bridges and I don't see him at that level.

Checked out some of the Pacers game last night. I was surprised to see Obi out there in crunch time. Pacers had 3 forwards on the floor. Maybe it was just the match ups with the Suns. Obi was grabbing all of the defensive rebounds so maybe he way playing C? He did play 26 minutes even with the addition of Siakam

I didn't see the game but M.Turner's numbers looked dreadful as if he were hobbled in some way

Wish the best for Obi but his game is fairly one dimensional and arguably selfish

So I think Durant was playing the 5. Looks like Obi is on the trade block again. I also wish him the best

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ToddTT wrote:

martin wrote:Who is his agent? Knicks should look to trade for this guy

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Ball hog.

Again with the dick jokes, but a tad further south?

martin wrote:

ToddTT wrote:

martin wrote:Who is his agent? Knicks should look to trade for this guy

Tweet was deleted or there was problem with the URL:

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Ball hog.

Again with the dick jokes, but a tad further south?

But did you see what Windler did in the G League though ??.

martin wrote:

nycericanguy wrote:Rozier is a great scorer/shooter, but he's so small and doesn't defend and has generally been horrible in the playoffs.

Hard to make a case for anyone other than DJM.

Didn't know about his defense, thought maybe that was much better in the Boston years.

What's his role in CHO and would his production - especially from the PG slot - be better off the bench next to McBride and co?

I remember him being considered a plus defender in Boston. The Hornets have been terrible for a couple of years maybe it's affected him. I haven't watched enough to know