DALLAS – JT Toppin's basketball journey has spanned real setbacks - being cut from his seventh-grade team at Reed Middle School in South Dallas - to reaching the heights of being a returning Consensus All-American and Big 12 Player of the Year. Now, in the midst of a standout junior season at Texas Tech, he's making his homecoming back to Dallas where he'll lead his No. 16 Red Raiders into the Dallas Mavericks arena to play No. 17 Arkansas at 11 a.m. on Saturday in American Airlines Center.
"I think it's going to be a great experience," Toppin said. "To play in any NBA arena is awesome but in my hometown with my family there is really special. To have my family watch me play in an NBA arena has been a dream for us."
Toppin and his family moved from California to Texas when he was 12 years old for a fresh start. He went to Eastern Hills Elementary School in Fort Worth when they first moved and then to Reed Middle School in Duncanville. After getting cut from the basketball team during his first year in middle school, Toppin made it in eighth grade but rarely played. He would enroll at Faith Family Academy in Oak Cliff where he played all four years of high school – leading the program to two state championships and earning 2023 Texas 4A State Player of the Year honors. "Basketball was hard for me to get good at," Toppin said last season in our feature story on his journey to success. "I had growth spurts and got tall, but nothing came easy. I could just finish. I couldn't shoot. Rebound and finish around the rim. That's all I could do. Just a bunch of layups." Despite accomplishments in high school, Toppin was still only ranked in the top 130 nationally by recruiting sites and chose to play his freshman season at New Mexico where he would earn Mountain West Freshman of the Year after averaging 12.4 points and 9.1 rebounds for the Lobos.
After going through the NBA Draft process following his freshman season, a return to his home state and a transfer to Texas Tech for his sophomore season sent him to another level where last year he earned Consensus Second Team All-America status and was the Big 12 Player of the Year and Big 12 Newcomer of the Year after producing 18.2 points, 11.5 rebounds and 19 double-doubles for the Red Raiders who advanced to the Elite Eight. Coming into this season, Toppin became the first Red Raider in program history to earn Associated Press Preseason All-America honors and was also named to the Naismith Player of the Year Watch List, Big 12 Preseason Player of the Year and every major preseason all-America list.
"I'm proud of how I've grown in the span of three years," Toppin said. "It's really about all the hard work I've put into it. This hasn't come easy and wasn't overnight. It really shows me that if I keep working hard that there are no limits for me."
Toppin continues to lead the Red Raiders this season with 20.8 points and 11.5 rebounds – ranking first in rebounds within the Big 12 and fourth in scoring. He's coming off his fourth double-double of the season and 35th of his career after going for 15 rebounds and 11 points last Sunday in a 24-point win over LSU in Fort Worth. In just 77 college games, he's already produced 1,213 points and 728 rebounds in his career along with having 58 double-figure scoring performances and 23 games with 20-or-more points. His 15 rebounds last weekend was the sixth time he's had 15 or more rebounds – falling just three away from his career-high of 18 last season against Saint Joseph's. Among his 19 double-doubles last season as a sophomore, Toppin went for 20 points and 10 rebounds in the Sweet 16 win over Arkansas in a game where the Red Raiders trailed by as many as 16 before storming back to advance to the Elite Eight.
"It's never over until the clock ticks to zero," Toppin said of the win over the Razorbacks. "That game was insane with the amount of emotions. It was crazy. I remember Coach Mac telling us that we were going to win the game if we keep playing together and playing defense. It was a great game and I'm excited about this one coming up."
Toppin and the Red Raiders will take on Arkansas in their 10th game of the season and in the 82nd all-time meeting between the two programs. Tech owns a 41-40 advantage over the Razorbacks after last season's win but knows it's in for a tough matchup in an electric environment. For Toppin, it's all about the work and the process. He's excited to be back home for the weekend to play in downtown Dallas in front of family and Red Raider fans, but also to get back on the court and continue building momentum that has the team on a three-game winning streak with only four non-conference games remaining before the start of Big 12 play.
"I like how we're clicking right now," Toppin said. "I feel like we're getting better every day and building chemistry that we needed at the beginning of the season. I think we're getting there but still have a lot of work to do to get to where we know we can get."
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