The Reach: Obi Toppin, F, Dayton
Me saying Obi Toppin is a reach at five, has more so to do with how I feel about his fit in Cleveland than it does with how I feel about him as a prospect. I already covered Toppin pretty extensively before when talking about draft fits for the Atlanta Hawks, so I won’t go super detailed here about his game.
But I just don’t think he’s ever going to develop into a star player and I don’t think he really helps the Cavs all that much with their weaknesses.
Yes, he would improve their 3-point shooting and be an exciting addition to the pick and roll alongside both Sexton and Garland. But defensively, Toppin while athletic is a very inconsistent defender, and adding him to an already horrendous defense, doesn’t seem super smart.
I think Toppin will develop into a fine player in the NBA, potentially even an All-Star level one, but there will better options at five for Cleveland to select in my opinion.