Kentucky needs Jacob Toppin to be "consistent, every-day guy" to reach potential

On paper, Kentucky forward Jacob Toppin is a living, breathing mismatch capable of taking games over at will. Standing 6’9″ with a 45-inch max vertical jump and 6’11” wingspan, he’s got all of the physical tools you dream of in a four, along with shot-making ability out to the perimeter. It’s why draft buzz was real going into his senior campaign, ready to finally turn that potential into production with keys in-hand at his position.

Again, on paper. The reality has been quite different for Toppin, though, through nine games. He’s averaging a career-high 11.9 points and 6.7 rebounds per game, but doing so shooting career-lows in efficiency across the board (42.0% FG, 16.7% 3PT, 64.5% FT). Rather than utilizing his gifts as an above-rim highlight waiting to happen, he continues to force the issue as a face-up specialist, launching untimely shots from the mid-range and three.

His most recent performance vs. Yale — four points (2-6 FG, 0-1 3PT), five rebounds, four assists in 31 minutes — led to a call-out from John Calipari during his postgame presser.

“We need Jacob (Toppin) to elevate his game,” the Kentucky head coach said. “Be more physical, go after more balls. If you jump 40 inches, how about every once in a while jump 40 inches? Like go for a ball, jump 40 inches, go get it. How about you go block a ball? How about one-dribble pull-ups, which he makes?”

Calipari spent the offseason raving about Toppin’s work ethic, with the senior forward leading the team in total shots inside the Joe Craft Center — 2,800 in a three-week span leading up to SEC Media Day, to be exact. It was a total body of work that led the Kentucky head coach to believe a breakout season was on the horizon for Toppin in Lexington.

“He’s living in the gym,” Calipari said at SEC Media Day. “Every player I’ve ever coached that lives in the gym, they’ve had breakthroughs.”

Toppin oozed confidence during Kentucky’s four-game exhibition tour in the Bahamas, where he averaged 16.8 points on 56.5% shooting and 53.3% from three. That confidence continued throughout the preseason, with junior forward Lance Ware witnessing it up close and personal during practices and workouts.

“Jacob is always in the gym, developing his jump shot but also just being more confident. Confidence is key in this game and the more confident you are the better you’ll play,” Ware added at SEC Media Day. “I see him locked in, but like anybody, you need to have a balance. And I think Jacob found his perfect balance between being focused, locking in, and also not being too locked in where he can’t connect with the team and bond.

“He found his perfect balance and I think it’s working out well for him right now.”

That locked-in confidence Toppin exuded simply has not been there to open the season, with the 6-foot-9 forward shooting no greater than 50.0% from the field in any matchup. Considering the preseason expectations, that’s got to change.

It comes down to consistency, says assistant coach Chin Coleman. Everybody has an on-and-off switch, and unfortunately, Toppin’s isn’t always on. And it’s not just a week-by-week or even day-by-day thing. Sometimes it flips on and off by the possession, which simply can’t happen for a player of his caliber and potential overall.

“It’s something that I say to Jacob all the time, it’s about being an every-day guy,” Coleman said during John Calipari’s call-in radio show on Monday. “He has the ability, it’s just about him being consistent with being an every-day guy and obviously not taking a break, resting and relaxing. It’s about always being on. He kind of flips the switch a little bit based on the possession, based on the practice, based on the game.”

That comes with the territory of stepping into a starting position with immediate expectations after being a career role player. There’s an adjustment period that comes with that.

For Kentucky to take that next step forward this season and reach its potential, though, Coleman believes that period has to end for Toppin. The team needs him to be an every-day impact piece, not one who comes and goes.

“He’s in a different environment right now,” Coleman said. “He’s in a different space, a different position with our team. And so in order for us to kind of reach the heights that we can reach, we need a consistent every-day guy, so to speak, out of Jacob Toppin.”