Obi Toppin had an ‘intense verbal altercation’ with head coach Tom Thibodeau after Knicks’ Game 4 playoff loss to Miami Heat
- Toppin was angry that his playing time decreased after Julius Randle’s return
- The 25-year-old Brooklyn resident was restrained by several of his teammates
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Knicks forward Obi Toppin had an “intense verbal altercation” with head coach Tom Thibodeau after New York lost a playoff game to the Miami Heat in the second round of the postseason.according to a report by The athletic.
The 25-year-old Toppin was furious about his lack of playing time after sitting on the bench for the entire second half of Game 4 in Miami on May 8.
Immediately after the game was over, the third-year Knicks player confronted his head coach, and their altercation spilled over into the [team’s] postgame meeting’ in the visiting locker room at Kaseya Center.
Unverified audio footage from the Heat’s home court also shows Toppin yelling at someone before being calmed down by several of his teammates, including Julius Randle, Josh Hart and Evan Fournier, in the tunnel after the game, though it appears that moment it was unclear who he was mad at.
Several Knicks players declined to comment on the altercation after the game. Toppin did not speak to reporters for the rest of the series.
Obi Toppin and Tom Thibodeau reportedly clashed after Knicks’ Game 4 loss to Miami
The 2020 National College Player of the Year, who hails from Brooklyn, recorded 18 points and eight rebounds as a Game 1 starter in the Knicks’ 101-108 loss to the Heat.
He was named one of New York’s five starting players after Randle was sidelined with an ankle injury sustained during the team’s first-round victory against the Cleveland Cavaliers.
However, Toppin saw his playing time drop dramatically after the return of ‘King Julius’, who played just six minutes in the team’s Game 4 loss.
The Athletic reported that Toppin and Thibodeau made amends a day after their clash. The Knicks’ No. 1 player played 12 minutes in each of the team’s next two games in the series, as New York crashed out of the playoffs.
Toppin made amends with his head coach a day after the game and played in the team’s final two games
Selected as the eighth overall pick of the 2020 NBA draft, Toppin averaged 14.7 minutes per game in his first three seasons in the Big Apple.
He usually comes off the bench as a backup to Randle, the team’s star forward and a two-time All-Star.
Eligible for a contract extension this off-season, Toppin could be fielded ahead of Thursday’s draft in exchange for a late first-round pick or a signing of a big name currently under contract.
The Knicks are short on picks this year, despite owning 10 first-rounders through 2029. The franchise traded its first-round pick this year to get Josh Hart from the Portland Trail Blazers ahead of the February NBA trade deadline.
New York is currently without a general manager since Scott Perry’s departure was confirmed in May. Perry, 59, had been the team’s GM since the 2017-18 season.