A wild trade scenario involving Oklahoma City Thunder power forward Serge Ibaka being sent to the Boston Celtics for point guard Marcus Smart and two of its eight draft picks in the upcoming draft has recently been suggested as both teams try to further improve their rosters for the next season.
Fansided proposed the said trade as the Thunder is allegedly set to prioritize big men Enes Kanter and Steven Adams as the team's frontcourt of the future, making Ibaka "expendable" for the right price this offseason.
Of course, OKC will not easily let go of the 26-year-old Congolese-Spanish forward as they are expected to have high demands in any potential deal. In truth, Ibaka remains to be one of the best defensive players and shot blockers in the league, big enough to guard centers and power forwards in the interior and is also quick enough to defend guards and wingmen in the outside.
He showed those strengths in their recent Western Conference Finals series with the defending champs Golden State Warriors as he guarded everyone in Steve Kerr's starting lineup from Andrew Bogut to the main man himself, Stephen Curry.
Ibaka had also developed a reliable three-point shot which is highly valuable in this era's small-ball style of play to stretch the floor.
These intangibles and more are said to be what attracted the Celtics to the 6-foot-10, three-time NBA All-Defensive First Teamer and he could actually be a realistic target for Danny Ainge and company this summer.
The report noted that Boston is already an above average defensive unit, but adding Ibaka to the equation would make them go up to the next level in terms of championship contention.
Cheat Sheet noted that the Celtics "has a weak front line and could really use a player of Ibaka's caliber at the power forward position".
Boston's frontline is currently composed of young players Jonas Jerebko, Kelly Olynyk, Tyler Zeller, Amir Johnson, and Jared Sullinger as they are noticeably in need of veteran leadership.
However, one risk in acquiring Ibaka is that he is set to become an unrestricted free agent next summer. He just finished the third year of his four-year, $49.4 million deal with the Thunder.