NBA Draft 2020: Big Board 4.0

18. Obi Toppin, forward, Dayton

Obi Toppin was the best player in college basketball last season. Offensively, he should have no trouble fitting in at the next level. He’s a Swiss Army Knife talent — an explosive rim-runner, a skilled face-up scorer, a nifty passer, and capable 3-point threat. Toppin can fit into most any system.

The issues for Toppin arise on defense, where his lack of lateral quickness could pose a major issue. He’s built like a power forward at 6-foot-9, but Toppin lacks the lower-body strength to handle the NBA’s more powerful bigs. He also struggles to defend in space — he’s vertically explosive, but that simply doesn’t translate to his lateral movements.

Toppin doesn’t have a clear role on defense and he may never get to the point of even net-zero impact on that end. All that said, his offense is too good to predict failure, and his place inside the top-10 on most boards is earned — even if it feels a little too optimistic.