The Toronto Raptors are facing the possibility of being without their starting forward Serge Ibaka for the deciding Game 6 of the Conference Semi-Finals series against the Boston Celtics. Ibaka is currently dealing with an ankle injury, and the Raptors officially listed him questionable for the next meeting between the two teams.
Ibaka suffered the injury during Monday night’s 89-111 loss to the Celtics in Game 5, which saw Toronto fall 2-3 in the series. He fell awkwardly during a defensive play in the second half and was forced to exit the match. The 30-year-old Ibaka initially thought the injury wasn’t serious, as he felt like he could have continued playing, but the ankle got worse on Tuesday.
“I’m just trying to see how I feel tomorrow,” Ibaka told reporters.
Serge Ibaka has been solid for Toronto during the Celtics series, averaging 11.8 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.0 assists, and 1.4 blocks per game. His shooting was particularly on point, as he averaged 51.2 percent from the field and 50.0 percent behind the 3-point arc.
Knowing how crucial Ibaka might be for the Raptors’ chances to avoid elimination, the team’s head coach Nick Nurse is optimistic about having a Congolese-Spanish basketball player at his disposal on Wednesday.
“We’ll just wait and see on that,” said Nurse. “But same as always, if he’s there, we’ll play him. I think there’s a good chance of that. If not, we’ll move on to the next guy and get them ready to go.”
