Knicks' Jacob Toppin will reportedly miss Summer League due to injury

The start of Jacob Toppin‘s NBA career will have to wait just a bit longer before he can finally take the court.

According to SNY’s Ian Begley, Toppin is not expected to suit up for the New York Knicks during this month’s Summer League action due to a “minor injury”. The former Kentucky Wildcat went unselected during June’s NBA Draft but was quickly picked up by the Knicks on a two-way deal. However, an untimely injury will keep him off the floor at least for the next couple of weeks.

Kentucky head coach John Calipari even mentioned Toppin’s injury during his offseason press conference late last week.

“Jacob I think is hurt. I’m not sure he’s gonna play,” Calipari said.

The Knicks will begin its offseason action on Friday, July 7, which runs through July 17 as part of the NBA 2K24 Summer League in Las Vegas.

Jacob Toppin will not be with Knicks’ Summer League team in Las Vegas due to a minor injury, per SNY sources. As previously reported, Toppin – the younger brother of ex-Knick Obi Toppin – had reached agreement w/NYK on a two-way contract. NYK traded Obi Toppin to IND on Saturday.

— Ian Begley (@IanBegley) July 3, 2023

Toppin’s addition to the Knicks was a welcome sight for basketball fans, considering his older brother, Obi Toppin, was a member of the franchise at the time and had been since he was taken No. 8 overall in the 2020 NBA Draft. Only that family connection didn’t last long. Obi was traded by New York to the Indiana Pacers on Saturday, just over a week after Jacob was signed.

During his three seasons at Kentucky, Toppin steadily progressed on and off the hardwood. He went from averaging under 18 minutes per game as a sophomore and junior to taking over a full-time starting role as a senior in 2022-23. The 6-foot-9 forward put up per-game numbers of 12.4 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 2.2 assists in 31.4 minutes last season. Toppin started his college career at Rhode Island before transferring to UK ahead of the ’20-21 season.

After putting his name into the 2023 NBA Draft pool following his senior year at Kentucky, Toppin’s name was rarely mentioned in the pre-draft process. He was not invited to the Combine and there was no talk of him going through workouts or interviews. Draft experts consistently left Toppin off their mocks entirely. That being said, his agency, CAA Sports, still helped land him a deal in the Big Apple.