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The small-sample-size detectives were on the prowl late Wednesday night and all day Thursday, trying to locate answers to a Knicks puzzle that is only 1/82nd complete. It may feel like we’ve seen more of the Knicks than that — it felt like the Knicks and Celtics might exchange wild haymakers like punch-drunk fighters all night — but it was only 58 minutes.
Honest.
So we will avoid small-sample-size declarations about Kemba Walker (who looked brilliant in flashes, scuffled some in larger swaths of the Knicks’ 138-134 win), Evan Fournier (who looked like Steph Curry one moment, Tim Curry of “Rocky Horror” the next), Mitch Robinson (the one Knick who can make you dream beyond your wildest dreams about what his ceiling is) and RJ Barrett (whose second half was every bit as vivid as his first half was vapid).
Throw them all back in the pot. More seasoning is required. More percolating is necessary. Let’s see what we think of all of them after, say, 10 whole games.
Obi Toppin, however …
Yes. He was the one who may have moved the needle the most in Game 1, because so much of the Knicks’ maximizing their season likely comes down to what kind of player Toppin is in his sophomore season.
He was extraordinary across his 28 minutes and 23 seconds of time, shooting 6-for-9 from the floor (missing only his three 3-point attempts), snaring five rebounds, blocking a shot and generally keeping Madison Square Garden on its toes every second he was on the floor.
That is Toppin’s great gift. He is far and away the Knicks’ best raw athlete, and when he runs the floor with confidence and abandon the Garden is always three seconds away from a patented explosion and the opposing coach is always five seconds away from storming the floor, arms upraised, calling an angry timeout drowned by the din.
“I just know if we have the rebound, I am taking off,” Toppin said. “I feel like I’m pretty fast, so I feel like some guys on other teams get back very slowly and I take advantage of that.”
But we already knew Toppin can do all that. What we didn’t know — and what, more important, nobody knows if Tom Thibodeau believes — is if he can do all of this as more than simply Julius Randle’s caddy. For one thing, the hours are terrible — Randle averaged 37 ½ minutes a game last year, tops in the NBA, so that leaves only 10 ½ for a strict backup to gobble up.
But if Thibodeau’s circle of trust grows to include pairing Toppin with Randle instead of exclusively going the either/or route …
Well, we saw the difference Wednesday. When Robinson came out for a first-half breather, Thibodeau replaced him with rookie center Jericho Sims. When Randle came out it was for Toppin — and when he returned, Toppin left the game. Shades of last year.
But in the third quarter — when the Knicks seized control of the game — Thibodeau brought in Toppin and shifted Randle to center. And for perhaps the first time the coach — and everyone else — saw the full reach of that possibility.
“[Toppin’s] confident,” Randle said afterward. “He’s just playing — playing to his strengths, his athleticism, his speed, getting out. He’s just taking the game easy. Closeouts, he drives, makes a play at the rim, shoots 3s with confidence. All of that is just repetition and work. He comes to work every day and works extremely hard.”
Toppin enjoyed a fine summer league stint in Las Vegas, averaging 23 points and shooting almost 46 percent. He regularly received encouraging messages from Randle, who was following Toppin’s progress, who surely knows that an increased role for Toppin means both a few more minutes off his feet some nights and also another dangerous weapon at Randle’s disposal when he tries to make plays on offense.
“I just know the work that I put in this offseason,” Toppin said. “I have a lot of great teammates and coaches that helped me get better this offseason.”
Wednesday, at least, that paid off a bonanza.
“I thought he changed the pace of the game,” Walker said. “He’s a very special talent. He can really run.”
He ran enough that the small-sample-size detective squad will be extra vigilant starting Friday night in Orlando, wondering if this can possibly be for real. The Knicks will also be keenly interested. Book it.
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