The Obi Toppin Basketball ProCamp, held Tuesday and Wednesday, gave the former Dayton Flyers star a chance show love to the fanbase that saw his career take off in a three-year period from 2017-20 when an unranked recruit became the national player of the year.
This was the third straight year Toppin has returned to Dayton for the camp. He said there were 144 boys and girls, from grades one through eight, at the camp Tuesday.
“I’m always going to have a camp here,” Toppin said. “I may have camps in other places, but I’m always going to have a camp in Dayton. I’ve got to. This is like my second home. I love coming back here. I see a lot of familiar faces every time each year, and there’s more kids coming so eventually we’ll grow and get bigger. We’ll see where it goes.”
Returning to Dayton will be easier now that Toppin’s playing for the Indiana Pacers, the NBA team located closest to Dayton. The New York Knicks traded to Toppin to the Pacers in early July. He’ll get a fresh start in his fourth season in the league.
“Me being in Indiana close to here is amazing,” Toppin said. “It’s probably a bad thing I’m an hour and a half away because I’ll probably be here every single day with the team and the coaches. The environment, the atmosphere here is amazing. Everyone shows love here.”
Toppin’s close friend and former Dayton teammate, Jalen Crutcher, helped him with the camp. Jalen’s older brother, Courtland, was also there.
Crutcher has played the last two seasons in the NBA G League and plans to go to training camp with the New Orleans Pelicans after playing for them in the NBA Summer League. He’s excited to see what Toppin can do with the Pacers after struggling to find consistent playing time in three seasons with the Knicks.
“I love it for the simple fact that he’s got a point guard who’s going to pass him the ball every time he gets the ball,” Crutcher said.
Crutcher was speaking about All-Star point guard Tyrese Haliburton, who was drafted with the 12th pick in the first round in 2020, four spots behind Toppin. Haliburton averaged a career-best 10.4 assists last season. It was his first full season in Indiana. He started his career with the Sacramento Kings.
Haliburton and Toppin have already started building a bond. They played together in the Dizzy Runs Pro Am in Noblesville, Ind., on July 26 and showed the type of chemistry that could pay off during the season.
“Everyone knows Tyrese is a great player,” Toppin said. “He deserves everything that comes his way. He’s an amazing scorer. He does everything. I can’t wait to get on the floor with him.”
Indianapolis and Dayton are close enough that multiple reporters from Indiana traveled to Dayton on Tuesday to talk to Toppin. No NBA reporter knows Toppin’s game better, however, than UD fan Damon Durbin, who has chronicled every game of his NBA career on his Pro Lowd Twitter account. He attended the camp Tuesday with his kids. He said Toppin fits the Pacers’ style of play.
“They’re going to get up and down,” Durbin said. “They’re going to let him do a lot of the things that he did at Dayton. I don’t think he’s going to shoot as many 3-pointers as he has been. I think he has a shot at the Most Improved Player (award) this year if they let him start and get out and run with Haliburton.”
Toppin joins a team that improved by 10 wins last season. The Pacers finished 35-47 but suffered their third straight losing season.
“I’m excited to get with the guys,” Toppin said. “I’ve been working out with a couple of them. But I’m excited to get down there and finally get on board with everybody.”
Toppin averaged 7.0 points and 3.0 rebounds in 14.7 minutes per game in three seasons with the Knicks. He said he learned to “be patient,” “have fun” and “grow every single day.”
Toppin would offer similar advice to the Flyers, especially the player following in his footsteps as the star of the team with NBA potential, DaRon Holmes II. Toppin spent three years at Dayton — though he had to sit out the first year — and was the national player of the year in his third. Holmes is entering his third season at Dayton.
Asked what advice he would offer Holmes, Toppin said, “Enjoy the moment. This is his team now, truthfully speaking. He’s got a lot of great players with him, but he’s got to take that head honcho spot and be the leader of this team and bring them to the A-10 championship. I think he’s going to do it.”
Toppin has remained close to the program. He sat behind the Dayton bench for a game against Virginia Commonwealth at UD Arena in the 2021-22 season. He did the same for a game at Fordham last season. He also the UD alumni team, the Red Scare, five times at UD Arena in the summer of 2022.
Toppin stopped by a practice at UD’s Cronin Center on Monday to see the team and his former coaches, including head coach Anthony Grant.
“They looked pretty good,” Toppin said. “Tough team. Good shooters. Athleticism. DaRon’s back. Everyone loves DaRon. Grant’s on their behinds right now. He’s going to make sure they’re good. I’m excited to see them play this year.”
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