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 financials

The financials of any new contract are always important to consider, and with a player like Ersan who is not in-line with the youth of this team, how much money he is offered and for how long must also be considered heavily.

Ilyasova is a veteran, and contracts for aging players can go one of two ways. In some instances, they are paid through the nose because they are seen as not only valuable players, but also voices of wisdom for a locker room.

On the other hand, they can at times be paid less if they aren’t seen as much of a wise voice, and due to the risk of signing a player who is past the apex of their career.

Must Read: 3 Reasons for the Sixers to Start Ersan

Ilyasova has been in the league for 9 years, but doesn’t have a whole lot of honors, only having appeared in 17 playoff games. So it’s not as if Ilyasova is one of the Paul Pierce-like players that has a ton of playoff experience, and a ton of leadership experience either.

While that can be looked at as a reason to stay away from Ilyasova, it could also be looked at as an advantage when bartering with him. Other teams may not offer him as much as he’s worth due to the illusion that he doesn’t have as much of a wise veteran presence like other players his age do.

As the Sixers have seen, though, Ilyasova is still valuable on the floor.

Additionally, as previously discussed with Saric, Ilyasova could be more of a veteran presence for Philly than any other team, just because of Saric. While it isn’t lucrative to sign a player due to the idea that he could be a veteran presence for just one player on the team, he has proven that he can be effective on the court still as well.

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With all of this in mind, the Sixers may be interested in Ilyasova in the perfect season of his career. The Oklahoma City Thunder trading Ilyasova for Jerami Grant may have foreshadowed what his value will be like as the free agency period approaches — low. With the Sixers seemingly treating him as a premium, though, they may be able to get just what they want in Ilyasova for cheap.