Houston Rockets: Should They Make A Play For Serge Ibaka?

With the trade deadline occurring at a later date in the season this year it seems like the rumors have been swirling for a lifetime about which players will be on the move within the Association and as always, the Houston Rockets are in the mix.

With the trade deadline occurring at a later date in the season this year it seems like the rumors have been swirling for a lifetime about which players will be on the move within the Association and as always, the Houston Rockets are in the mix.

Serge Ibaka is one of those whose name has been thrown around in trade circles and it makes sense based on the direction the Magic seem to be headed in. This seems to be following the same pattern that the Magic followed last year, remaining quiet until pretty late in the piece before trading away veterans for not much in return.

There are several reasons why Ibaka and the Houston Rockets have been mentioned in the same sentence over the past couple of days and it’s plausible that GM Daryl Morey puts a package together in an attempt to acquire him before the deadline. Especially as it seems that his value is almost at an all time low.

The Houston Rockets are in dire need of a shot blocker and that is what Ibaka has made his reputation in the NBA by doing. He has averaged around two blocks a game over the span of his NBA career.

Look how well Ibaka protects the paint here, something the young Clint Capela hasn’t provided on a consistent basis:

Not only will Ibaka add his three blocks a game he’s currently averaging, but he contests so many shots at the rim that players have to change their shot or just avoid going to the rim when he’s there.

Ibaka also fits the bill for the Houston Rockets in many other ways. He is the definition of a Stretch-4, shooting 38 percent from behind-the-arc this season on a poor Orlando team with little spacing, so imagine the damage he could cause by reuniting with James Harden.

He is also a competent rebounder, averaging 7.4 of those for his career thus far.  This is an upgrade over Ryan Anderson and something that has become a problem over the last couple of weeks.

The Rockets now rank 25th in rebound percentage over the last 15 games at 48 percent, which means they’re securing less than half of the available rebounds per game.

This has had a perilous flow on effect to the defense which is conceding an almost league worst 111.4 points per game in January, something that Ibaka would most definitely fix.

There is an obvious case as to why someone with the versatility of Serge would be a valuable asset to the Rockets playoff hopes now and into the future.

As a power forward who is able to shoot the three well and also guard and play the center, he is someone who the Rockets should seriously be taking a look at as the deadline ticks ever closer as he seems to be a good fit in Houston.

The only issue now, is how much the Rockets are willing to give up to acquire a Ibaka rental because his contract expires this season.

Ibaka’s value is quite low at the moment and teams aren’t likely to alter their franchise in return for the big man to play around 30 games for them.

The market will also be small as teams will have to be sure that Ibaka is going to resign with them, and having Harden and being a contender will certainly aid that cause.

So what’s he going to cost?

Per Keith Smith of 16 Wins a Ring, it’s going to require young players and other reports have specified Orlando is on the look out for a wing.

So what do the Rockets have that they can offer?

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This is a simple trade the Rockets can make which has multiple benefits for them. The Rockets can give the Magic K.J. McDaniels, a young and explosive wing who is buried deep in Mike D’Antoni‘s rotation.

The Rockets aren’t using him all that much at this point, so he won’t be missed if he’s flipped for Ibaka.

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In order to make the salaries match Corey Brewer is going to be used as the filler. The three-year deal Morey gave him after the Western Conference Finals run has been a disaster and Brewers departure from Houston is long overdue.

But it’s good that the Rockets are able to get him off the books this way.

Brewer is guaranteed for another year after this, and so is McDaniels so in reality if Serge doesn’t end up being the player they’re expecting him to be they’ve just freed up an extra $11M for free agency to go an acquire a second star to Harden.

The Magic will probably require a pick with this trade but as a Rockets fan I would be happy with that deal.

This trade offers the franchise an opportunity to get deep into the playoffs this season for in reality no real loss.

Plus, I would love to see Oklahoma City Thunder GM Sam Presti’s head explode when a James Harden – Serge Ibaka led team beats the Thunder in the playoffs.

Wouldn’t that be magical?

So I say go for it Houston, you’ve got nothing to lose and it all to gain.