ROUNDTABLE: What Jacob Toppin can do for Kentucky
Jacob Toppin's decision to transfer to Kentucky is the latest big news item related to John Calipari's program as next year's roster takes shape.
It's an interesting addition. Toppin was a three-star recruit and was more recently a rotation player for a mid-major program, but he's got an interesting athletic arsenal that caused Kentucky, Oregon, and Iowa State to compete for his collegiate future.
Below you can read takes on what Toppin's addition means for Kentucky from several Cats Illustrated writers.
Jeff Drummond: Full disclosure: I did not know much about Jacob Toppin prior to this week beyond the fact that he was the younger brother of the Dayton superstar. That said, I think the UK staff has done their homework on Toppin and like what they see. He's a nice addition from the standpoint of athleticism, experience, and depth. It reminds me somewhat of bringing in a guy like Heshimu Evans from Manhattan in the late-90s. That addition did not move the needle much, but it wound up being a huge piece of a championship puzzle. There's a good chance he'll be around for a while, which gives you some additional depth moving forward. A nice complement to this No. 1 rated recruiting class.
David Sisk: Jacob Toppin’s commitment adds a couple of things. It provides depth to the practice rotation. It is incredibly important to have ten good players competing each day. A redshirt would help him develop, but if he could get immediate eligibility we never know what the roster will end up looking like next season if there are injuries. He could be a solid player down the road. I like his frame. Evidently he is a late bloomer, so he could have a big upside. As more and more top players look to go to the league it will be refreshing to see guys develop through the ranks and end up making contributions. If it doesn’t pan out, it’s not like John Calipari took a huge gamble.
Travis Graf: I really like this pick up for Kentucky. It’s a low risk, high reward pick up for John Calipari. At the minimum, the ‘Cats are picking up a practice player for the next few seasons. Toppin will be given time to develop in Kentucky’s system with minimum pressure to be an immediate impact guy if the transfer rule is passed. He will not scare off elite prospects for at least a season or two and he has the versatility to make a splash down the line. With the new G-League developments, Calipari will probably look to construct his roster with more upperclassmen and multi-year players. Kentucky will go into the 2020-2021 season using most of, if not all of their allotted scholarships, the opposite of what they did in 2019-2020.