LEXINGTON — There may not be a more athletic player on Kentucky’s 2021-22 basketball roster than junior Jacob Toppin.
Here’s what you need to know about the Wildcats forward with impressive bloodlines.
Jacob Toppin is the younger brother of Obi Toppin, first-round pick for the New York Knicks
Several standout games for Toppin this season have helped him begin to build his own reputation on the court, but he’s still best known as the younger brother of former Dayton National Player of the Year Obi Toppin.
The younger Toppin is still a work in progress as a basketball prospect, but Obi has predicted that Jacob will one day join him in the NBA.
“It means a lot because that’s my brother and I look up to him,” Jacob said last season after transferring from Rhode Island to Kentucky. “I’m trying to work every day, getting better in the gym and hopefully one day that dream can come true.”
Jacob’s father, Obadiah Toppin, was a noted streetball player in New York City.
“I used to watch him play all the time when I was younger, whether it was at streetball games or around town playing in the parks,” Jacob said. “He is, was, a great player. He was very energetic like me and my brother and he was very athletic.”
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Even before he played a game for Kentucky, his teammates spread Toppin’s reputation as an elite dunker.
“His dunks are ridiculous,” former Wildcat Terrence Clarke said ahead of the 2020-21 season. “I’ve personally seen him take two steps, through the legs, go back at different levels… If we had a dunk contest, it would be pretty amazing, but Jacob, his rebounding is ridiculous, so I’d probably hit him.”
Toppin has displayed that dunk-making ability multiple times in the game, but perhaps not more impressively than the first half of the Jan. 22 game at Auburn when he hit a 360-degree dunk on a first-half steal.
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While Toppin’s offensive skill set still needs to be refined, his energy levels have never been a question when he takes the floor for the Wildcats.
In fact, it was learning to harness that energy in a positive way that led to some of his best performances this season. Both Toppin and UK coach John Calipari have pointed out that the youth’s maturation is key to his development.
“I’m an energetic guy on and off the court,” Toppin said. “…So, sometimes I can get a little silly. I’m not locked up anymore.”
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Toppin’s maturity was on full display in a loss to LSU when he contributed 14 points and eight rebounds.
“I’ve always been a goofy person,” Toppin said. “But obviously I need to change it. And Coach Cal is helping me change it.
Email Jon Hale at [email protected]; Follow him on Twitter at @JonHale_CJ.
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George is Digismak’s reported cum editor with 13 years of experience in Journalism