Los Angeles Lakers: 4 reasons why the Lakers could sign Serge Ibaka

Will the Los Angeles Lakers actually sign Serge Ibaka?

All of these reasons are great reasons to pursue Serge Ibaka. However, despite all of the positive signs, I do think that the team is going to use him as a plan B option rather than as a plan A option.

Thus, we will only see the Lakers sign Serge Ibaka if the team cannot execute what I think is their first gameplan. I could be wrong about this, but personally, I think the Lakers are better off going a different direction.

The direction that I think would be the best is to re-sign Howard and Cousins both to veteran minimum deals. Markieff Morris should be brought back as well and probably won’t get much more than the veteran minimum as well.

McGee can be included in a trade (probably with Kyle Kuzma) with a guard — perhaps for Derrick Rose? With Kuzma being traded, that seemingly opens a hole at the power forward position for Ibaka.

There are other options. Danilo Gallinari is a fantastic MLE target that could stretch the floor and provide a nice dynamic alongside Markieff Morris.

It is cheaper to re-sign Howard, Cousins and Morris, even if Ibaka is a cheap target. The veteran minimum deals don’t count against the cap and allow the team to use that cap for a position of more need, such as the backcourt.

All the reasons are there for the Los Angeles Lakers to sign Serge Ibaka but there is still a better option for the team. Ibaka should be kept on speed dial in case things don’t go how the Lakers want, but right now, I do not think he is the team’s first choice.