Does Serge Make Toronto Contenders in the East?
The Toronto Raptors have been struggling as of late, and have a huge hole at power forward. What did they do to address that issue? They traded for the best available power forward (assuming Paul Millsap is not available) in Serge Ibaka. In return, they had to give Orlando backup wing Terrance Ross, as well as a 1st round pick. What does this trade do for Toronto’s chances to compete in the eastern conference playoffs?
Every team that plans to compete in the playoffs has holes they would like to address around the trade deadline, but Toronto had perhaps the biggest gaping hole of any contender at power forward. This season, their only real power forward worth mentioning is Patrick Patterson, and he has been out due to injury lately. While Patterson is a generally underrated role player, he’s not exactly the guy that comes to mind at power forward when trying to build a contender. That said, this season Toronto has played like an elite team with him on the court, on par with the Warriors in point differential, while playing below average with him off the court, on par with the Timberwolves in point differential. Is this an indication that Patterson is that good of a player for this specific team? Or does that speak to how little they have to play at the 4 when he is off the court?
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While Patterson has been out, Toronto has been reduced to playing true centers at power forward because they simply have no one else to put there. The returns have not been good. Simply in games that Toronto has played without Paterson, they are 8-8 this season. They are also 0-2 in the 2 games he left less than 10 minutes into the game due to injury. In all other games, they are 24-14, even with having nobody to back him up. Adding the Serge protector gives them a versatile player who can play both the 4 and 5, either in place of Patterson or alongside him based on matchup, who can space the floor (39% from 3), while giving them much needed rim protection (1.6 blocks per game).
As far as what Toronto gave up, Terrance Ross was a valuable “3 and D” type of reserve wing who provided solid offense, but was more 3 than D. While he was a key contributor in the Raptors rotation, he was a bit redundant with fellow wing Norman Powell. Powell is a similar “3 and D” type of player who so far this year has been more D than 3. While both are similar players, Powell is younger, cheaper, and has more upside for the next few years. Shedding Ross’s salary gives Toronto the ability to make a run at re-signing Ibaka when he becomes a free agent at the end of the season. If one or the other had to go, Ross was the one that made more sense. Toronto also attached a 1st round pick to the deal, but their pick likely won’t be extremely valuable as it is likely to fall in the 20’s in the draft order. That is not to say a stud player can’t be drafted in the 20’s, but it is far less likely than early in the 1st round.
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Cleveland is the obvious team to beat in the east if they are healthy, but they aren’t. Starting guard J.R Smith has been out much of the season, and while he is expected to return next month, he may need to shake off some rust going into the postseason. The big blow is the Kevin Love injury, which raises questions as to whether or not he’ll be ready for the playoffs. Assuming he is ready, Ibaka gives Toronto the perfect answer for Love. Toronto can play a number of different styles to match anything Cleveland throws at them now that they brought in Ibaka. Against the starters of Love and Thompson, Toronto can counter with Ibaka and Valanciunas. Against a floor stretching lineup of Love and Frye, Toronto can counter with Ibaka and Patterson. If Cleveland wants to go small and play Love at the 5 and LeBron at the 4, Toronto can counter with Ibaka at the 5 and DeMarre Carroll at the 4. The versatility of Ibaka will be key to defending anything Cleveland throws at them. The most important thing is that Toronto will now have 48 mins worth of quality players to play at power forward, when before they only had Patterson.
All that being said, Cleveland has to still be considered the team to beat in the east. They have won the east each of the last two years, and until they are knocked off they will remain the favorite. If Love can’t come back, things might get really interesting, but even if he does, Toronto is now better equipped to match up. Will Boston or Cleveland respond with a big move before the deadline? We’ll be on the lookout for that now.
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