Milwaukee Bucks: Ersan Ilyasova’s shooting held up through wider inconsistency

In spite of a year of significant ups and downs in his performance, Milwaukee Bucks veteran Ersan Ilyasova’s shooting has largely held up.

Currently in his third stint with the Milwaukee Bucks, Ersan Ilyasova has reached a point where the team’s fans are intimately familiar with the ups and downs that come with his play.

Throughout his long combined tenure in Milwaukee, Ilyasova’s high points have frequently been followed by lows. Put simply, it may go somewhat unnoticed as he’s not the flashiest of players, but the Turkish forward is, and has long been, incredibly streaky.

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This season has been no exception to that either, as Ilyasova stormed into the season in great form after a stellar FIBA World Cup showing with the Turkish national team, only to later drop off to the point where he had largely fallen out of favor completely prior to the season being suspended due to the coronavirus pandemic.

With the signing of Marvin Williams, Ilyasova’s days essentially seemed to be numbered with the Bucks. Having said that, it would be typical of the 33-year-old if the break in play allowed him to shake out of that, and any potential resumption of the season was to coincide in a relative hot streak from Ilyasova.

Regardless of fluctuations in his overall impact, though, the truth is the current campaign has been an undoubted positive for Ilyasova in terms of his 3-point shooting.

Making 37.1 percent of his attempts from distance, Ilyasova is tracking for his most efficient long-range shooting season since 2014-15.

In one notable way, that quality shooting is even being undersold by a strange anomaly. Per NBA.com/stats, Ilyasova has made a dreadful 18.2 percent on his attempts from the right corner. Contrast that with his excellent 40 percent from above the break, and 50 percent from the left corner, and it’s easy to identify that it wouldn’t have taken much for Ilyasova’s percentages to have been even more stellar.

Making the most of the catch-and-shoot looks that have come his way, converting 39.6 percent of those from behind the arc, Ilyasova has largely fulfilled the role that’s expected of him with the Bucks.

Also worth noting is Ilyasova’s exceptional 61.9 percent success rate from the midrange. The midrange is far from a core part of Milwaukee’s diet, and therefore Ilyasova has attempted just 21 shots from that area of the floor, but it’s always been a favorite shot of his and it remains reliable as a bailout option.

Having never been blessed with speed or athleticism, the defensive side of the ball undoubtedly leads to the biggest concerns with Ilyasova whenever he takes to the floor at this point of his career. But while he can continue to make shots, Ilyasova does still have something to offer.

As a potential free agent this summer, Ilyasova will likely be eager to knock some more down to prove a point when the season resumes.