NBA Free Agency 2017 Player Profile: Ersan Ilyasova

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Apr 11, 2017; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Hawks forward Ersan Ilyasova (7) reaches for a loose ball past Charlotte Hornets forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (14) in the second quarter at Philips Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports /

Weaknesses

Ersan is an incredibly smart defender, as evidenced by the charges he takes, but he’s never been the most athletic player on the floor. The 30-year-old forward isn’t going to get any more spry as his career continues.

It is somewhat worrying that most of the good run Ersan has had in his career has been on bad teams. Ilyasova never really scratched Oklahoma City’s rotation, which may have been a bad move on their part or the result of the Thunder simply not feeling he was fit to get real minutes on their squad.

He started 52 games for an eighth-seeded Pistons team that got swept by the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2016, but finished the season with the ever-lowly Magic. Then, Ersan got ignored in OKC before starting 40 games for the 76ers, who were fun but not good, and played in 26 games and started 12 for a wayward Hawks team.

Still, the Hawks did make the playoffs, although Atlanta was 11-14 with Ersan logging minutes. He’s still hitting threes, but Ersan hasn’t contributed to a lot of good teams over his career.

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