Knicks re-sign Jacob Toppin to a two-way deal, add Shake Milton

The New York Knicks announced the signing of forward Jacob Toppin to a two-way contract on Monday, March 4th. The announcement coincided with the final day in which NBA franchises could sign players to two-way deals according to the Association rulebook.

Aged 23 and measuring at 6-feet-8 and 200 pounds, Toppins is coming off appearing in the All-Star Weekend following the steps of his older brother Obi, both of them making the field of Slam Dunk Contest participants in 2022 and 2024. Obi went on to become the Dunk Champ while Jacob was robbed of a final berth and got eliminated in the first round last February.

At this point in his young career, Toppin is still raw and closer to the level of play seen in the G League rather than that showcased by NBA players. In his eight games with the Knicks earlier this year, Toppin has averaged 1.6 points on 55.6% shooting to go with 0.9 rebounds and 0.4 assists in just over 4.6 minutes per game.

His performance has been much better in the G League, where he helped the Westchester Knicks to hoist the Showcase Cup last December.

In regular-season G play, Toppin has averaged a strong 21.5 points (52 FG%), 8.7 rebounds, and 2.5 assists over 36.9 minutes in 15 games—all as a starter. In the Cup, Toppin played 17 games (16 started) putting up 14.9 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 2.5 APG, and 2.3 stocks a pop in 32.3 MPG.

The Knicks signed Jacob as an undrafted free agent after nobody picked him in the 2023 NBA draft last year coming out of Kentucky. His journey with New York has seen him move between the main roster and the farm squad thanks to the two-way contract system. Toppin was briefly moved to the 15-man roster of the Knicks on a 10-day contract, and with that deal running out he’s now re-inked another contract on a two-way status.

By adding Toppin on that basis, the Knicks have now filled their quota for two-way contracts, which also include those of Duane Washington Jr. and Charlie Brown Jr.

In related news, the Knicks’ addition of bought-out guard Shake Milton is about to become official after he cleared waivers on Monday, which means the franchise now has 13 players on standard contracts, alongside the three on two-way contracts, still short of reaching the maximum number of rostered players allowed by the NBA (15+3).