Rockets will present intriguing challenge to Raptors' Jumbo Lineup

The Raptors' Jumbo Lineup may face a fascinating test against the Rockets' super small ball style during Friday's scrimmage

The Houston Rockets may be a fascinating test for the Toronto Raptors so-called "Jumbo Lineup" during Friday's scrimmage.

The lineup is one of the many quirky strategies head coach Nick Nurse has dreamt up this season. With Kyle Lowry running the point, the Raptors would have one of the tallest lineups in the NBA, consisting of Pascal Siakam, OG Anunoby, Serge Ibaka, and Marc Gasol all on the court together. The average height of that lineup is 6-foot-7, three inches taller than the average height of the Rockets' starting squad.

"If you really can play against them with a big lineup, I'm sure you can play against any team," Ibaka said Wednesday.

While the rest of the NBA has shifted toward small ball, opting to get more shooters on the court, the Raptors are tinkering with a different approach thanks to the defensive versatility and shooting ability of their bigs.

Gasol and Ibaka rank sixth and seventh, respectively, in the NBA in 3-point shooting percentage for players over 6-foot-10, according to Basketball-Reference. They make the Raptors the only team in the NBA with two big who shoot over 39% from beyond the arc.

For Ibaka, this year has seen a massive boost in his 3-point shooting. He went from a 29% 3-point shooter last season to nearly a 40% shooter this year. It's an impressive jump that has come from a lot of hard work, according to Nurse.

"As soon as practice is over every day Serge comes right to me and gets his watch out and goes 'how much time do we have exactly?'" Nurse said. "Like today, I said 'you've got 32 minutes Serge' and he goes, 'those guys speaking at the start a practice ate into my time.'

Having that kind of size without compromising shooting ability is certainly something that intrigues Nurse, who said he went so far as to try a super jumbo lineup during Wednesday's practice. He said he swapped out Lowry for the 6-foot-3 Norman Powell, leaving Powell and Siakam to handle the bulk of the ball-handling responsibilities.

"I think I just like them to be able to figure things out in a lot of different ways just in case," Nurse said. 

Playing alongside Gasol is a welcomed opportunity for Ibaka, who said he's learned a lot practicing with his fellow Spaniard.

"The way he handles the game, his IQ, and his passing ability, just from watching him, the way he passes has really motivated me to work on my passing game," Ibaka said.

Even though the two only played 89 minutes together this year, it's something Ibaka said he enjoys doing because it allows him to stay versatile on both ends of the court.

"One of the things is me and Marc can play both from inside and outside," Ibaka said. "He can roll, I can roll, he can shoot, I can shoot, it just depends who we have to read, who's guarding me and who's guarding him. From there, we try to figure out how to play."

The Rockets will pose a challenge to the lineup if Nurse decides to give it a try against the NBA's smallest team. Ibaka and Gasol are nearly six inches taller than Houston's bigs, P.J. Tucker and Robert Covington, and while they should be able to out-muscle the Rockets down low, the question will be if they can stretch out to the 3-point line and switch with the speed needed to defend the Rocket's offense.