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Obi Toppin Yelled at Tom Thibodeau After Knicks' Game 4 Loss vs. Heat

Two prominent New York Knicks had a war of words in the locker room after their playoff elimination.

Jeremy Brener

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The beginning of the New York Knicks offseason started off with a bang.

On May 8, the Knicks dropped a 109-101 decision to the Miami Heat in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, falling behind 3-1 in the best-of-seven set. After the defeat, Obi Toppin let his frustration, likely out of frustration for being benched the entire second half, at head coach Tom Thibodeau.

"According to league sources who were present, once the final buzzer sounded Toppin aired his grievances to Thibodeau," The Athletic's Fred Katz writes. "The 24-year-old wants to play, and he wants to win. That evening, neither happened. An intense verbal altercation occurred between the player and coach as the group trekked to the Kaseya Center's visiting locker room in Miami. It spilled into the postgame meeting once the doors closed."

Toppin averaged 7.4 points per game this past season, a step below his mark from 2021-22. He did come up big at the end of the regular season, averaging 21.8 in five starts while Julius Randle was injured, though the Knicks' postseason fate was more or less assured at that time.

His status as a former top-10 pick springs a ton of potential, but he's fallen far behind Julius Randle on the depth chart. His minutes dropped from 17.1 to 15.7 this past season, and as a 2020 top-10 pick, he could be making a stronger impact elsewhere.

While Toppin and Thibodeau made up the following day after tensions had dropped, the offseason brings along a big question in regards to his future, and whether he will ever play another game in a Knicks uniform.

If the Knicks receive an offer for Toppin, they should at least consider it before they let him test restricted free agency in a year from now.

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Jeremy Brener
JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.

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