Isaiah Roby Release Complicates New York Knicks' Post-Obi Toppin Era

One of the New York Knicks' first camp cuts places big pressure on some of those left behind.

In a macabre twist, Obi Toppin's biggest impact on the New York Knicks' rotation may come after he's long gone. 

The Knicks closed the book of Toppin with a thud over the summer, trading the eighth overall pick of the 2020 draft to the Indiana Pacers for a pair of late selections. Playing the Toppin blame game is a complicated affair and one where there's no clear path to victory for the Knicks. 

New York more or less filled Toppin's role in Tom Thibodeau's ironclad nine-man rotation, though, as a traditionally-sized backcourt man, he's far from being the Julius Randle spell option the departed Dayton alum was. 

DiVincenzo notwithstanding, the Knicks are running back the same group responsible for the most successful season the franchise has had in a decade. That patience is well and fine for the time being but it doesn't solve the immediate issue behind Randle.

Thibodeau's dedication to nine felt like could've welcomed some flexibility with a bigger body or two in the lineup, especially with the NBA cracking down on Randle's potential load management. The fact that Randle is working his way back from an ankle injury that visibly hindered his postseason performance only casts a brighter spotlight on the depth behind the two-time All-Star.

That's where Isaiah Roby was supposed to come in: from the get-go, it was clear that the Knicks had plans for Roby, who was granted a $400,000 check for sitting on the bench for the last day of the 2022-23 regular season. Since entering the Association with Oklahoma City in 2020, Roby has shown fleeting hints of lasting longevity as a depth contributor. 

In his final season with the Thunder (2021-22), Roby put up 10.1 points and 4.8 rebounds. He played 42 games with the Spurs while the Knicks made their playoff run last year but further progress was hindered by an ankle injury.

But it became apparent that Roby would need time to work off his procedure, struggling during the Summer League session and he further grappled with establishing any sort of consistency over the preseason quartet, putting up a respectable eight points but only 2.5 rebounds a game over the four contests. He's now one of the first odd men out as the Knicks slice their roster down to opening night standards.

Obi Toppin (L) is gone, leading the Knicks to try and fill the hole with players like Isaiah Roby  / USA TODAY SPORTS

Asked to address the departure of Roby and two-way contract signee Jaylen Martin, Thibodeau kept things generic before the Knicks dropped their final preseason game against the Washington Wizards.

“It’s the worst part, especially because of the job that they did," Thibodeau said, per Kristian Winfield of the New York Daily News. "Both are very deserving and great kids, great workers and it’s a tough call, but you do what you think is best for the team. So that’s what we did.” 

Being the head coach, Thibodeau will do as he pleases. But the fact remains that the Knicks are more or less back where they started in the immediate aftermath of the Toppin trade.

It'll be up to those left behind to adjust to perhaps uncomfortable roles in their metropolitan settings. Josh Hart has been the definition of a good soldier, willing to offer the expertise gained in the nomadic opening stages of his career. Whether that's enough to counter what he lacks in size against Toppin remains to be seen. RJ Barrett could be another candidate to work in the second unit, but the Knicks would probably prefer he master his abilities in the primary backcourt first.

Of course, there's also the curious case of Jericho Sims. A natural center, Sims was often the odd man as Thibodeau's nine used Mitchell Robinson and Isaiah Hartenstein as the exclusive paint prowlers. Sims did decent enough for himself over the preseason slate, even though, like Robinson before him, his offense is mostly limited to affairs directly under the basket. 

Outside observers will undoubtedly argue that Randle's reliability (having missed just eight games over his first four New York seasons) makes arguments over the backup power forward spot moot. But if the Knicks want to build upon last year's magic, every spot on the depth chart needs to be accounted for and firing on all cylinders.