Obi Toppin’s first dunk competition was when he was a senior at Ossining High, facing three other senior students from Section 1 high school (Westchester schools).
“He took off from the foul line and flew like MJ to win the competition,” Ossining coach Michael Casey told the Post. “Most of the others struggled to finish their dunks. But, no, I didn’t think Obi would be in the NBA dunk contest after that. ”
It will be an especially proud moment for the Toppin family when the Knicks rookie chooses the lottery – a budding bloomer who wasn’t even a full-time starter in his first year in Ossining – competing in Sunday’s Slam-Dunk Contest. The event will be held at the All-Star Game break in Atlanta.
Toppin ‘growing # 1 basketball idol was not Michael Jordan, but his father, Obadiah, a streetball legend whose nickname was “Dunkers Delight”.
Obadiah participated in the old And1 Streetball tour and was part of a 2006 Gatorade commercial with Vince Carter, Dwyane Wade and Ben Wallace.
“I talked to him about some of the dunks,” said Toppin. “He’s basically telling me which ones are going to look crazy at that moment. ”
Toppin said his father, who also played abroad, is his number one inspiration in the burial department.
“I grew up watching him, ” Toppin said. “Each team he played on was – his name was Dunkers Delight, so that speaks for itself. ”
Contacted by The Post, Obadiah said he planned to be in Atlanta.
“I am very excited and excited,” Obadiah told The Post. “I know he is going to do what he does. ”
Some dunk competition experts believe that one of Toppin’s dunks on Sunday will be a variation of a fastbreak slam between the legs that he performed at Dayton last season. Toppin said that after the game it was a dunk that his father perfected on the courts of Rucker and Dyckman parks.
Toppin, who turned 23 earlier this week, will be in Atlanta with one of his Knicks teammates, All-Star Julius Randle. In a pandemic format, players were instructed to arrive on Saturday night, so there would not be much practice time for Toppin to use Randle as a support.
Toppin likes dunks that include jumping over obstacles and made reference to Aaron Gordon’s artistic performance last season when he jumped 2.13 meters Tacko Fall.
Asked whether 6-9 Randle, his forward mentor, would assist during the break, Toppin did not rule out.
“I don’t know how to respond – I can search for Julius, or not,” said Toppin.
Toppin will face former Duke guard Cassius Stanley, a second-round pick who plays in the G-League for Pacers, and Portland guard, Anfernee Simons. They will donate their $ 100,000 earnings to historically black colleges. Toppin is studying for York College.
“It’s definitely crazy for me, and it’s crazy because I was just texting Cassius the other day,” said Toppin. “We were both saying how surreal this is. We are in our first year in the NBA and we can compete in this dunk contest. Therefore, having this opportunity is a blessing. ”
Casey, Toppin’s high school coach, said his former player may not be the favorite as a big man facing guards who are usually more visually attractive by flying through the air.
“He’s going to have to be creative,” said Casey.
Toppin is the sixth Knicks player to compete in the dunk contest – the last to win was the 1.5m tall guard Nate Robinson, who won three times. Kenny “Sky” Walker won as Knick in 1989.
“I’ve been seeing a lot of burials in the past few days,” said Toppin. “I will try to do things that have not yet entered the dunk contest. I’ve seen many great dunks. I may have to break one of the old dunks that someone did. I’m definitely getting ready for the time to come. ”
The only buried man that Toppin is happy not to face on Sunday is the Bulls guard, Zach LaVine, who is making his first All-Star appearance. Toppin feared that LaVine, the 2016 winner, would be eliminated, as he would be in Atlanta anyway.
“I am happy that Zach is not there,” said Toppin. “I’m going to put this out there. I’m glad he’s not there because he is a great diver. I definitely love to compete. Even if he was in it, I would have been a great time and we would have done a show for everyone. There are three incredible dunks, Cassius, me and Anfernee. So, the three of us, I feel like we’re going to put on a show for everyone. ”