NBA Summer League: How did three Dayton Flyers do?

Toppin makes case for bigger role with Knicks with standout play in Las Vegas

Two members of the Dayton Flyers’ historic 29-2 team ran into each other Monday on the final day of play in the NBA Summer League.

Obi Toppin and Ibi Watson, who were last on the court together on March 7, 2020, at UD Arena, combined for 17 points in Las Vegas. Toppin and the New York Knicks beat Watson and the Atlanta Hawks 104-85 in Las Vegas, Nev.

For Toppin, the game Monday brought a productive appearance in the Summer League to an end. The highlight for the second-year pro came Friday when he scored 31 points on 13-of-20 shooting.

Toppin finished the Summer League ranked fourth in scoring (21.0 points per game in six games) among all players who appeared in at least four games and 15th in rebounding (8.3). The Knicks finished 4-2.

Toppin, the No. 8 overall pick in the draft last year, played a much bigger role in the summer than he did in his rookie season. He averaged 4.1 points in the regular season and 6.4 points in the playoffs.

“I feel like I know my role,’’ Toppin told reporters Sunday. “I tried to focus on rebounding and defense mostly. Just improving in that, offensively things will come to me. I feel like defense is the most important thing when playing for coach (Tom Thibodeau) — and playing anywhere.

“You do hustle plays on defense, get a block, a steal. It’s picking up the team and giving players energy. If you get a stop on defense, you convert it to offense. We have a lot of different weapons offensively. So when we get that stop, we’ll finish on the opposite side.’’

Watson, who signed as an undrafted free agent with the Hawks, averaged 4.4 points in 16.6 minutes per game. His biggest highlight came in his first game Aug. 8. He got a difficult reverse layup to drop in a game against the Celtics.

Like Watson, another former Flyer, Jalen Crutcher, was trying to use the Summer League as a way to earn an invitation to training camp in the fall. Crutcher signed with the Milwaukee Bucks after not being drafted. He appeared in four games, averaging 5.3 points in 18.9 minutes per game.

Crutcher delivered his best performance Sunday, scoring 10 points on 4-of-5 shooting in 25 minutes.

Wayne High School graduate D’Mitrik Trice, another undrafted free agent, also played for the Bucks. He averaged 8.0 points in four appearances.

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