The Sixer Sense
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4 Reasons to Aim to Retain Ersan Ilyasova After This Season

By Josh Wilson

Dec 16, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers forward Ersan Ilyasova (7) dribbles past Los Angeles Lakers guard Louis Williams (23) during the second half at Wells Fargo Center. The Los Angeles Lakers won 100-89. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 16, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers forward Ersan Ilyasova (7) dribbles past Los Angeles Lakers guard Louis Williams (23) during the second half at Wells Fargo Center. The Los Angeles Lakers won 100-89. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /
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The extras

Another reason that the Sixers should remain interested in him is the extras he brings to the court. There has been a lot of talk around the league regarding Ilyasova and the amount of charges he draws.

Ilyasova currently ranks first in the league in total charges drawn at 15.

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Charges are marked down by the NBA as one of the stats categorized under “hustle stats.” These are the stats that used to be non-quantifiable (officially) but now are counted by the league.

Some parts of players’ games used to go unnoticed by those who would only consider the numbers because things such as this were not counted by the league. With the emergence of hustle stats, players like Ilyasova are rightfully valued at a much higher level than they previously were.

Other things that are included in hustle stats are deflections, screen assists, and recovered loose balls.

Drawing charges seems like a very minuscule thing when it comes down to the grand scheme of a game, but for a player like Ilyasova who is not the best defender that exists, it shows one very important thing — effort.

Ilyasova puts up a defensive box plus/minus of just -1.5 this season, which is below the “normal” of 2.0, that of an “average” NBA player.

So instead of great defense, drawing charges shows that, despite how unskilled he may be as a defender, he’s still trying to get involved on the defensive end, and still trying to make his presence known in whatever way he can.

He may not be the player getting a lot of steals or blocks, but he’s definitely not too shabby at getting in the way while the opposition is trying to work their offense. In some instances, that can be just as valuable as good defense.

A motivation such as that on the defensive end deserves reward, and the Sixers may look at things that Ilyasova does just like that and decide they are good reasons to pursue him in free agency.