Knicks rookies Obi Toppin and Immanuel Quickley were both named to the USA Basketball Select Team on Thursday.
It will give the pair a chance to be coached by Erik Spoelstra, scrimmage with the Olympic squad in their Las Vegas training camp and have a clear pathway to the national team pool if they continue to progress.
“It’s an honor to be selected for the USA Select Team,” Toppin said in a video shared by the Knicks. “It’s an opportunity for me to get out to Vegas and play against the best players in the world — guys like [Kevin Durant], Khris Middleton, Kevin Love, Dame Lillard. … Can’t wait to get out there and help them prepare to go to Tokyo and win the gold medal.”
After being drafted eighth overall out of Dayton, Toppin recovered somewhat from a disappointing rookie regular season by raising his production in the playoffs. The power forward averaged just 4.1 points in 11 minutes during the season, but upped that to 6.4 points in 13 minutes during a first-round playoff loss to the Hawks.
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