It didn’t take long for Philadelphia to warm to Ersan Ilyasova in his Sixers comeback. When he returned for his second stint with the team in February, the offense surged. Joining Marco Belinelli, the backup duo combined for 3.3 made threes a night, catapulting the Sixers from 17th in made threes per game (10.4) before their arrival, to 3rd (12.5) to close the season. Extra shooting and depth were no longer such big concerns, while the option of playing Ilyasova at center helped unlock some of the Sixers’ best small lineups.
Next season, the Sixers will be looking to new backup big Mike Muscala to fill that role.