Hapoel IBI Tel Aviv announced the signing of forward Jacob Toppin on Wednesday, July 29, adding the former NBA and G League player on a three-year contract that runs through the 2028-29 season.
Toppin, 26, joins Hapoel after spending the last three seasons in the NBA system with the New York Knicks and Atlanta Hawks organizations. The 2.06m (6-foot-9) forward appeared in 31 NBA games, averaging 1.4 points, 0.7 rebounds and 0.3 assists in limited minutes while shooting 48.6% from the field, 51.2% on two-point attempts and 42.9% from three-point range.
The younger brother of Indiana Pacers forward Obi Toppin, Jacob established himself as a productive player in the NBA G League. Across 73 career G League appearances, he averaged 19.2 points, 8.2 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game, shooting 55.7% from two-point range, 33.9% from three and 78.2% from the free-throw line.
Toppin had his strongest G League season in 2024-25, when he averaged 22.3 points, 8.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists over 23 games. Playing for the Westchester Knicks and Wisconsin Herd, he shot 50.3% from the field and 37.1% from beyond the arc.
His athletic profile was one of his biggest calling cards during his time in the United States. Toppin participated in the 2024 NBA All-Star Slam Dunk Contest after beginning his professional career as an undrafted player following the 2023 NBA Draft.
Hapoel is also working to secure Israeli citizenship for Toppin based on his Jewish heritage, which would allow the club to register him as an Israeli player in domestic competitions.
“I’m very excited to sign with Hapoel and can’t wait to start competing alongside my teammates,” Toppin said. “I’m looking forward to meeting the fans, the players, and the coaching staff. I’ve heard so much about the club, and I’m excited to experience the culture, work hard, compete in every competition, and win a championship.”
The move continues a major roster reshaping for Hapoel after the club finished sixth in the 2025-26 EuroLeague regular season with a 23-15 record. Hapoel reached the EuroLeague playoffs but was eliminated by eventual champion Real Madrid in a 3-1 series.
Toppin joins a revamped roster that has already added Amir Coffey, Khadeem Carrington, Zach LeDay and Tomas Satoransky while losing players including Kessler Edwards, Chris Jones, Yam Madar, Levi Randolph, Keandre Cook, Jonathan Motley and Collin Malcolm.
