NBA Mock Draft 7.0: Is LaMelo Ball destined to join the New York Knicks?

As with the last few weeks, evaluations of Toppin appear to be all over the map. He comes in at No. 15 on Trevor Magnotti’s latest Big Board based purely on scouting, but boards that incorporate sourcing from NBA teams tend to have him ranked much higher. It seems clear that he has an NBA role as a vertical spacer and transition finisher, but imagining him as Amare Stoudemire or Blake Griffin requires a lot of faith in his development as a shooter and creator. Not to mention his defensive question marks.

Toppin could certainly score a ton of points in the widely spaced offense of the Warriors but it’s not clear how much that would actually help Golden State’s bottom line or how much it would raise their championship odds next season. However, it could turn out that Stoudemire or Griffin is in his probable outcomes and he’s an anchor star for the next iteration of the team. Or, with his value seemingly so high among so many teams, he could be valuable as a trade chip to try and land a more veteran piece to open their short-term window a little wider.

Learn more about Obi Toppin with our full scouting report.