Ibaka's Days in Toronto Could be Numbered
The Toronto Raptors have a bit of a centre conundrum this offseason with Marc Gasol and Serge Ibaka heading into unrestricted free agency.
Yesterday we looked at Marc Gasol and the case for re-signing the Raptors' 35-year-old pending free agent. The argument there boils down to Gasol's continued defensive production, his veteran leadership, and Toronto's ability to retain him on a short term deal. For the 31-year-old Ibaka, the situation is a little more complicated.
Before we dive into Ibaka's situation, it's worth noting that Ibaka, who had a career year this season, told Hollywood Unlocked that he wants to stay in Toronto earlier in the year.
Ibaka averaged a career-best 15.6 points with 38.5% 3-point shooting and 8.2 rebounds per game. He looked to be the Raptors' better offensive centre in the playoffs, averaging 14.8 points with just over two 3-pointers made per game in the postseason.
When Ibaka is hitting shots, he can be terrifying for opposing teams. His ability to come off the bench and contribute double-digit points while spacing the floor is the kind of thing teams throughout the league are looking for. Therein lies the problem for Toronto.
The Raptors should have about $45 million of cap space to work with this offseason, according to The Athletic's Blake Murphy who broke down Toronto's cap situation last week. A sizeable portion of that money is likely going to be devoted to retaining Fred VanVleet who could command over $20 million a year on his next contract. After that, Raptors president Masai Ujiri called the Raptors' bigs "priorities" this offseason, but retaining them with the leftover cap space while also ensuring enough money remains to go after Giannis Antetokounmpo in 2021 might be tricky.
Considering Ibaka's age, this offseason likely to be his last opportunity to secure a multi-year contract. If that is what he's looking for, Ibaka might price himself out of Toronto's range.
One option for the Raptors, suggested by Doug Smith of the Toronto Star, is to entice Ibaka to re-sign with what Smith called a "golden handshake." Essentially, Toronto could overwhelm Ibaka with money on a one-year deal, which would allow the Raptors to retain him while also keeping cap space open in 2021.
If that doesn't work, Ibaka's Raptors future could come down to Toronto's ability to re-sign VanVleet, whose departure would clear up cap space. Otherwise, Toronto might have to look to deal Norman Powell, the Raptors' 27-year-old guard who is set to earn $10.9 million this year with a player option for $11.6 million in 2021.
There's no questioning Ibaka's talent these days. He still has plenty left in the tank to provide a team. But with a cap crunch this offseason and an eye toward 2021, Ibaka's days in Toronto could be numbered.
