Former Bucks forward Ilyasova perfect complement for Embiid in Philly
Since he left Milwaukee, forward Ersan Ilyasova has played for four NBA teams, making stops in Detroit, Orlando and Oklahoma City before landing in Philadelphia in a trade completed Nov. 1.
According to 76ers coach Brett Brown, the 6-foot-10 Ilyasova is just what his improving team needed.
Philadelphia is in Milwaukee for a Martin Luther King Jr. Day matinee matchup against the Bucks, in a game featuring top rookie of the year candidate Joel Embiid.
Brown said Embiid and Ilyasova, who played seven seasons for the Bucks, complement each other perfectly.
"First, let's go to his skill package," Brown said. "His pairing with Joel Embiid is exceptional. That is a legitimate stretch 4 and a mobile stretch 4.
"Then you add in the part that he is a veteran in our eyes, he's the elder statesman. He's very quiet, cerebral. He's had a lot of experience internationally and in the NBA. You weigh up all those things, he's a wonderful teammate and a huge acquisition. He's been a timely pickup."
Ilyasova was acquired along with a first-round pick in exchange for Jerami Grant.
The 29-year-old is averaging 14.3 points and 6.2 rebounds in 38 games for the 76ers and is shooting 36.6% from three-point range.
Embiid will be on his usual 28-minute restriction against the Bucks, a concession to the surgeries on his right foot that kept him out of play for two seasons. Point guard T.J. McConnell is not with the team because of a right wrist injury, and Spanish guard Sergio Rodriguez will start in his place.
Brown said Nerlens Noel would back up Embiid, meaning Jahlil Okafor could be the odd man out against the Bucks. Okafor played well against Washington on Saturday, scoring a season-high 26 points in a starting role with Embiid sitting out. Embiid does not play in the second game of back-to-back sets.
The 76ers have stuck to their minutes limit on Embiid, and the most he has played in a game is 30 minutes in a 93-91 victory over Minnesota on Jan. 3.
Philadelphia won three straight games - its longest winning streak in three years - before losing at Washington on Saturday.
Brown said he supports Embiid in his bid for all-star consideration, something that is even more remarkable because of the minutes restriction he is playing under.
"He hasn't played much basketball, let alone NBA basketball," Brown said. "You can never leave fundamentals, and I think that's part of my responsibility coaching him. He gets it. He lets me coach him. He wants to be great, and I don't throw that sentence out lightly."
Brown said he thinks the Bucks are ahead of the 76ers in building a winning team with the development of Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jabari Parker.
Parker was the No. 2 pick in the 2014 draft and Embiid was the No. 3 pick, but the 7-foot center from Cameroon lost two years to injury.
"I don't feel like we've caught up," Brown said. "You take this thing out a year or so, and you feel like you can have that conversation.
"Right now Milwaukee is in the middle of the pack in the East. I like our schedule recently where you've had a Charlotte and a Washington and now you have a Milwaukee. You've got Toronto. You're sort of moving up the food chain in our last four games.
"I think Milwaukee's program - you look at the pieces - they're just a bit further along. I view them a bit like I view Minnesota. They've just had a few years longer than we have. We've only had Joe (Embiid) - if you're candid, you'd say, 'Yup, that's why we went through this.' So that's a 30-game comment, not a few years comment.
"This Milwaukee program has a heck of a foundation in Giannis and Jabari, for sure."