Ranking the trade value of each player on the Toronto Raptors

Serge Ibaka

Very similar to Jonas Valanciunas, Serge Ibaka is a talented center on an expensive contract. At $23 million next season, he’ll make approximately $6 million more than JV. However, he’s also a more valuable player.

After becoming a full-time center, Ibaka has been far better this season than his previous time in Toronto. Rarely, does a player have his best offensive season at 29-years-old, but that’s precisely what Ibaka is doing right now.

He’s averaging 20.5 points per possession (the highest of his career), a 56.3-percent EFG% (the second-highest of his career), and 1.7 assists per 36 minutes (by far the highest of his career).

One way Ibaka has stood out offensively is by draining an unbelievable amount of mid-range jumpers.

Defenses are being designed to take away three-point shots and shots at the rim. As a result, Ibaka is shooting a high percentage on a high volume of mid-range shots. Just under half of Ibaka’s shots have come from the mid-range this season and he is making over 50-percent of those shots (According to CTG). That’s incredible efficiency on a shot which is typically not efficient.

Like JV, the biggest factor working against Ibaka is that no-one needs a starting center. The difference between the two, the idea of Serge still makes sense in a high-end playoff series. As the game goes small and big-men are taken off the floor, Ibaka still is mobile enough and spaces the offense enough to stay on the court.

Perhaps at the end of the game, if things get really fast, you might need to sit him for a possession or two. But even at the highest levels, Ibaka should have no problem playing 25-30 minutes a night.