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Jul. 23—Obi Toppin has added drivers, irons and a putter to a bag of tricks that includes his signature between-the-legs EastBay dunk.
The former Dayton Flyers forward, now preparing for his seventh season in the NBA, held the Obi Open on Wednesday, July 22, 2026, at NCR Country Club. The event benefited the Toppin Family Foundation, which he founded earlier this month. Toppin's mom, Roni Toppin, is the president of the foundation.
The foundation's mission, according to its website, is to "create opportunity where it is needed most — supporting underprivileged children and families while investing in student-athletes who face financial hardship. We believe access to support, education, and athletics can change lives and strengthen our community for generations to come."
Toppin said they created the foundation to help the next generation. He had some struggles as a kid and wants to give kids a "better path to their dreams."
The golf outing was one of the foundation's first fundraising events. Toppin still shares many more basketball photos than golf photos on his Instagram profile, but the game is growing on him.
"My golf game is getting better every day," Toppin said. "It's all right. I can hold my own. I'm not the best golfer, but I'm getting better every single day."
Toppin, the consensus national player of the year in his final season at Dayton in 2020, wasn't the only former Dayton All-American on the course. DaRon Holmes II, who arrived at Dayton one year after Toppin departed, also played in the event.
"He told me it was his first time on a golf course," Toppin said. "I'm like, 'No way.' So I've got to get out there with him more and teach him golf."
Holmes signed autographs and posed for photos with members of the Flyer Faithful a day earlier at Lee's Famous Recipe Chicken in Kettering.
Obi Toppin: A tribute to a new Dayton Flyers hall of famer
Toppin returned to Dayton not only for the golf outing but for his sixth annual basketball camp. The Obi Toppin Basketball ProCamp, sponsored by CareSource, welcomed approximately 150 kids in grades one through eight to the University of Dayton RecPlex on Thursday. The camp continues Friday.
Toppin started the camp at the Bales Center in Beavercreek in 2021. In 2022, it moved to UD, where it has been held ever since.
"It's amazing," Toppin said. "I see a lot of familiar faces. I feel like it gets better and better every year, and it looks like there are more kids than previous years."
Toppin planned to head straight from the camp Thursday to speak to Dayton's current players at the Cronin Center. He met some of the players earlier in the week at a dinner.
Toppin could speak to the players about any number of experiences he's had in his career, including overcoming injuries. A foot injury marred his sixth NBA season and third with the Indiana Pacers. He played in the first three games of the season but didn't return to games until Feb. 26. He then appeared in 21 of the last 23 games.
One season after losing to the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 7 of the NBA Finals, the Pacers finished with the second-worst record in the NBA and the worst record in franchise history (19-63). The team's star player, Tyrese Haliburton, missed the entire season after tearing his Achilles tendon in Game 7 last summer.
"There were a lot of injuries last year, but we have a healthier team this year," Toppin said. "We've got a great group of guys coming back, and I feel like our group has a really good chance."
The struggles of the Pacers coincided with the rise of Toppin's former team, the New York Knicks, who won the NBA championship one year after being eliminated by the Pacers in the Eastern Conference finals.
"I'm obviously close to the guys on that team, so I'm super happy for them," Toppin said. "They worked really hard to get to where they had to get to."
Now Toppin's goal is for the Pacers to follow the Knicks as champions.
"We've got to go get us one," Toppin said.
Continue reading...
The former Dayton Flyers forward, now preparing for his seventh season in the NBA, held the Obi Open on Wednesday, July 22, 2026, at NCR Country Club. The event benefited the Toppin Family Foundation, which he founded earlier this month. Toppin's mom, Roni Toppin, is the president of the foundation.
The foundation's mission, according to its website, is to "create opportunity where it is needed most — supporting underprivileged children and families while investing in student-athletes who face financial hardship. We believe access to support, education, and athletics can change lives and strengthen our community for generations to come."
Toppin said they created the foundation to help the next generation. He had some struggles as a kid and wants to give kids a "better path to their dreams."
The golf outing was one of the foundation's first fundraising events. Toppin still shares many more basketball photos than golf photos on his Instagram profile, but the game is growing on him.
"My golf game is getting better every day," Toppin said. "It's all right. I can hold my own. I'm not the best golfer, but I'm getting better every single day."
Toppin, the consensus national player of the year in his final season at Dayton in 2020, wasn't the only former Dayton All-American on the course. DaRon Holmes II, who arrived at Dayton one year after Toppin departed, also played in the event.
"He told me it was his first time on a golf course," Toppin said. "I'm like, 'No way.' So I've got to get out there with him more and teach him golf."
Holmes signed autographs and posed for photos with members of the Flyer Faithful a day earlier at Lee's Famous Recipe Chicken in Kettering.
Obi Toppin: A tribute to a new Dayton Flyers hall of famer
Toppin returned to Dayton not only for the golf outing but for his sixth annual basketball camp. The Obi Toppin Basketball ProCamp, sponsored by CareSource, welcomed approximately 150 kids in grades one through eight to the University of Dayton RecPlex on Thursday. The camp continues Friday.
Toppin started the camp at the Bales Center in Beavercreek in 2021. In 2022, it moved to UD, where it has been held ever since.
"It's amazing," Toppin said. "I see a lot of familiar faces. I feel like it gets better and better every year, and it looks like there are more kids than previous years."
Toppin planned to head straight from the camp Thursday to speak to Dayton's current players at the Cronin Center. He met some of the players earlier in the week at a dinner.
Toppin could speak to the players about any number of experiences he's had in his career, including overcoming injuries. A foot injury marred his sixth NBA season and third with the Indiana Pacers. He played in the first three games of the season but didn't return to games until Feb. 26. He then appeared in 21 of the last 23 games.
One season after losing to the Oklahoma City Thunder in Game 7 of the NBA Finals, the Pacers finished with the second-worst record in the NBA and the worst record in franchise history (19-63). The team's star player, Tyrese Haliburton, missed the entire season after tearing his Achilles tendon in Game 7 last summer.
"There were a lot of injuries last year, but we have a healthier team this year," Toppin said. "We've got a great group of guys coming back, and I feel like our group has a really good chance."
The struggles of the Pacers coincided with the rise of Toppin's former team, the New York Knicks, who won the NBA championship one year after being eliminated by the Pacers in the Eastern Conference finals.
"I'm obviously close to the guys on that team, so I'm super happy for them," Toppin said. "They worked really hard to get to where they had to get to."
Now Toppin's goal is for the Pacers to follow the Knicks as champions.
"We've got to go get us one," Toppin said.
Continue reading...
