5 targets for the Orlando Magic’s massive trade exception
5 targets for the Orlando Magic’s trade exception
Serge Ibaka, Los Angeles Clippers
The last time the Orlando Magic traded for Serge Ibaka, it did not work out well. And that might be an understatement.
With patience running thin from management and Rob Hennigan trying to save his job, he pushed all his chips into the massive free agent spike summer of 2016 and then traded perhaps his best young player in Victor Oladipo for the expiring contract of Serge Ibaka in hopes of solidifying the team’s defense and rim protection (ignore the Bismack Biyombo storm clouds on the horizon).
Ibaka saw through how unserious the team was about winning pretty quickly. And while he had a solid individual run of 15.1 points per game with a 54.7-percent effective field goal percentage and a game-winner in his first game back against the Oklahoma City Thunder, he checked out pretty quickly.
The Orlando Magic traded him to the Toronto Raptors before the season ended, grabbing Terrence Ross and a first-round pick the Magic ended up giving away.
Ibaka went on to play well for the Raptors, helping them win the title in 2019. But he has faced a pretty steep decline since then. The 32-year-old has seen his role decrease since signing with the LA Clippers. This year, he is averaging 6.0 points per game in 14.7 minutes per game.
The Clippers are still in playoff positioning and do not seem that interested in jeopardizing that. But it is also looking more and more like Kawhi Leonard and Paul George are not coming back this year either.
With the hopes of a title gone, the Clippers seem ripe to focus on lowering their tax bill.
LA currently has $168.5 million committed in salary, putting them $31.9 million over the tax threshold. Their bill thanks to the multipliers on the tax is expected to be $93.9 million.
Even shedding Ibaka’s $9.7-million salary would help the Clippers save $40.8 million in luxury tax payments. The Clippers are likely eager to get off this salary.
Even if the Magic ultimately buy out Ibaka’s expiring contract, they could — and should — grab extra draft compensation (even if it is just a lottery-protected first in the draft of their choice or a second-round pick) to take on Ibaka’s salary.
Still, Ibaka could prove to be a solid backup big for the rest of the year. Especially if the Magic end up moving Mo Bamba.
Then again, this is just a salary dump. So if that is the case, the Magic should almost certainly ask for a first-round pick for the trouble of parking his salary and buying him out.