6 takeaways from Ibaka's arrival in Toronto

Serge Ibaka won't make his Raptors debut until next Friday against the Celtics, but the three-time All-Defensive Team member's first night in Toronto still provided glimpses of how the Raptors' immediate future might be affected by his arrival.

Worth the wait?

The most obvious observation from Ibaka's first home game as a Raptor was that the big man never touched the court. The decision left eager home fans disappointed, but was a sensible one.

Perhaps in an average situation, Toronto would've thrown Ibaka into the fire on Wednesday, but with the All-Star break providing eight days off between games, it's a rare opportunity for a midseason acquisition to get acclimated before suiting up for his new team.

"I'm sure he's seen everything we do offensively, defensively," Dwane Casey said before Wednesday's victory over the Hornets, "but the terminology (in Orlando and OKC) is the difference. Communication is the No. 1 thing. You've got to be able to communicate what's going on with your teammates.

"As much as we'd love to have him out there, he's a human being going through emotions. Being traded is not easy. We'll see plenty of him come Feb. 24."

Evolving, not regressing, defender

One of the biggest criticisms of Ibaka's game is that the 27-year-old is a shell of his formerly intimidating presence on the defensive end. Casey believes much of that diminishing reputation is tied to his decreased block numbers, which Ibaka's new head coach simply chalks up to a more modern defensive role.

"Guarding some wing players and small forwards, or the shooting (power forwards) that can stretch out on the floor, it's very difficult to get a guy to go from (defending) out there to the rim to block shots. The game has changed so much since his younger days in OKC, when he was more in the paint. But his game has really evolved. Every year, he's gotten better. His skill set has allowed him to evolve."

Ibaka's ability to guard a more wide-ranging sample of bigs isn't lost on starting center Jonas Valanciunas, who's had trouble trying to defend inside and out in Casey's system.

"He's kind of a combo guy," Valanciunas told theScore. "He's athletic and fast, so he can stop small guys, like a (small forward) or a (power forward), and shooting bigs. He's a great addition."

Ibaka's defensive numbers are down across the board this season, but it's worth wondering how much of that can be tied to an unhappy time in Orlando, where the Magic are once again playing meaningless ball. After all, Ibaka was still an elite rim-protector less than a year ago in Oklahoma City.

Unheralded offensive threat

Though it's been lagging during the team's recent free fall, the Raptors' No. 4-ranked offense didn't necessarily need a boost, yet the general consensus seems to be that they'll get one in Ibaka.

"He has a versatile pick-and-roll game, because he's added a 3-point shot," Hornets head coach Steve Clifford described in an offensive scouting report of Ibaka for reporters, as he awaited word on whether the newest Raptor would play Wednesday.

Though he isn't the most efficient roller in pick-and-roll situations (0.95 points per possession), Ibaka is shooting a career-high 38.8 percent on 3.8 3-point attempts per game.

"He can both roll to the basket - which he did when he was younger - and now he steps back and shoots the three. He still has the ability to roll and collapse the defense. Both create space, similar to Patrick Patterson, actually," Clifford added.

The absence of Patterson, whose two-way versatility is so integral to the Raptors, has been a key component of Toronto's 2017 slump. With Ibaka now in the fold, the team should almost always have one of these modernized bigs on the court, and will surely finish plenty of games with both.

Crowded frontcourt

After starting the previous two games at power forward, rookie center Jakob Poeltl played the entire fourth quarter on Wednesday, as part of a Raptors lineup that erased a 17-point deficit with a 32-10 period. Hopefully Poeltl basked in that glory, because frontcourt minutes will be tough to come by from here on out.

Between Ibaka, Patterson, Valanciunas, and Lucas Nogueira, who's been somewhat of a revelation this season, the Raptors have four players who can soak up all of the 96 minutes required between the two big positions - without taking into account a small forward like DeMarre Carroll sliding over to the 4 in smaller lineups.

That leaves Poeltl, fellow rookie Pascal Siakam - who's started 38 games - and offseason acquisition Jared Sullinger on the outside looking in as Casey tightens his improved rotation down the stretch.

Youth movement on the wings

While 2016 draftees Poeltl and Siakam will see their minutes dry up, the trade that brought Ibaka north of the border could be a great opportunity for two 2015 Raptors draft picks.

Two-way stud Norman Powell, who started in a small lineup Wednesday, figures to take the majority of the departed Terrence Ross' minutes, while Delon Wright might be the low-key winner of the deal.

Wright's a point guard, but his size (6-foot-5) and length allow him to seamlessly move over to the 2, and gives Casey options in a three-PG-lineup that includes Kyle Lowry and Cory Joseph, which Toronto has gone to in each of its last two games.

"No question," Casey answered when asked whether Wright's length gives him a chance to crack the regular rotation with Ross gone. "There's some minutes to be had by him."

Wright, who underwent shoulder surgery in August, went from zero minutes through the Raptors' first 55 games to logging 38 minutes in the last two days, joining Lowry and Joseph in the aforementioned fourth quarter unit that decimated Charlotte.

"It allows Kyle and Cory both to get off the ball," Casey said of Wright's presence alongside Lowry and Joseph. "Teams are all locked in on playing those guys. It allows Kyle - our best 3-point shooter - to become a shooter. It gets him off the ball, where they can't blitz him. And Delon's size and length helps him defensively."

Another deal coming?

The last two points lead to an interesting question: Is Masai Ujiri done?

Between Sullinger's expiring $5.6 million contract, two rookie bigs who likely won't factor into the team's short-term plans, Joseph perhaps becoming expendable - depending on Toronto's faith in Wright - and one more 2017 first-rounder to play with, can Ujiri cobble together a package that lands the Raps another impact player before next Thursday's trade deadline?

In any event, the acquisition of Ibaka, the eventual return of Patterson, and the further emergence of Powell and Wright in Ross' stead should make the Raptors a much more complete, dynamic team than the one that took the floor on Wednesday.

(Photos courtesy: Action Images)