NBA Free Agency Rumors: Miami Heat want Serge Ibaka

Serge Ibaka has been added to the list of names on the radar of the Miami Heat, as NBA free agency gets underway.

According to Ira Winderman of the Sun Sentinel, the Miami Heat are thinking of making a play for big man Serge Ibaka.

The Heat hope to be busy during this offseason. They have a lot of big names that they want, including Gordon Hayward and Blake Griffin. However, if they can’t entice the stars, Ibaka may be at the top of the Plan B.

The Miami Heat were disappointed with the 2016-17 season. They finished in ninth place in the Eastern Conference, leaving them out of the NBA Playoffs. They had the same record as Chicago, but a tiebreaker awarded the Bulls the spot.

An All-Star would help their quest back to the top of the NBA. Miami was 15th in rebounds per game, which wasn’t good enough. Last season, Blake Griffin had an off year in terms of rebounding, pulling down just 8.1 per game. His career average is 9.4 rebounds per game. On the other hand, Serge Ibaka had an average year, grabbing nearly seven rebounds per game.

Both would work great alongside Hassan Whiteside, who is known for his rebounding prowess. He pulled down an amazing 14.1 rebounds per game last season. Ibaka would work well in contrast with Whiteside. While the rebounding king works the paint, Ibaka could work as a stretch forward who can shoot from the outside with effectiveness.

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Bringing Blake Griffin to Miami will be tough since so many teams are trying to attract him, including the Boston Celtics. This means that the Heat will probably have to go after someone like Ibaka, which wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. The Heat are just one piece away from returning to the playoffs and making a difference in the league.