Before Serge Ibaka was traded to the Orlando Magic, the Oklahoma City Thunder and Toronto Raptors were in serious trade discussions to send Ibaka to the North.
Sportsnet's Michael Grange reported that the Thunder asked for Cory Joseph,Patrick Patterson, Norman Powell, and the number nine pick in the 2016 NBA Draft in exchange for Ibaka.
Raptors GM Masai Ujiri felt the asking price was too high and decided ultimately Ibaka wasn’t worth the demands.
This trade would have taken away important bench production from the Raptors, as well as their first round pick, and they would've had no insurance that Ibaka would want to stay in Toronto at the end of the season.
What the trade would have given Toronto in return is Ibaka's Bird rights, with the opportunity to sign him to the longest and largest deal available next offseason. However, the Raptors' plan for the future did not account for maxing out the shot blocker with the bulk of their extra cap money.
Ibaka was later traded to Orlando for Victor Oladipo, Ersan Ilyasova, and Domantas Sabonis.
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