Serge Ibaka didn’t get much of a chance to make his mark on the LA Clippers franchise before he now has a decision to make.
He ended up missing a lot of time due to injury, and only ended up playing in 41 regular season games. He played in just two in the postseason.
While I would absolutely come back if I were Ibaka, he may turn down his player option and see how green the grass would be on another side. The Clippers would almost certainly like him back, but there could be other competition too.
No. 3 reason why Serge Ibaka may opt out and leave the LA Clippers: Playing time
While many would argue that Serge Ibaka was the best center on the LA Clippers, he finished the regular season as the backup behind Ivica Zubac.
He began the postseason as the backup as well. Even when he outplayed Zubac in the postseason, he still only got 18 minutes in the two games.
While last season isn’t completely telling of how next year could go, it is possible that Ibaka could feel that he deserved more playing time, and he may want to go somewhere that he knows will start him for sure.
He started most of the games he played in this year, but didn’t finish where he started.