Most Improved Player Spotlight: Ersan Ilyasova's Quiet Leap

Since being drafted by the Milwaukee Bucks in 2005, Ersan Ilyasova had played out his basketball career as a valuable-but-not-invaluable contributor for the Milwaukee Bucks.

There was no question that he helped provide depth on a team still looking to figure itself out, but Ilyasova didn't seem to answer any of the questions that plagued the franchise, nor did he possess the kind of overwhelming talent that could manufacture new and legitimate strengths going forward. He was what he was: perfectly useful, if also perfectly limited.

Ilyasova lived in a space reserved for the bulk of the NBA's finest role players, and although he had carved out a nice niche with his effort and shooting, his decision to leave Milwaukee for Spain in the summer of 2007 was hardly a tragedy.

The Bucks moved on, and so did Ersan...for two years, each went about their business, without all that much regard for how their split had altered the outlook of the other. Ilyasova played two perfectly solid seasons for FC Barcelona before returning stateside, and in his absence, the Bucks had looked to replace his production with Yi Jianlian, Charlie Villanueva and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, with very mixed results.

Ilyasova returned to Milwaukee in 2009 to little fanfare, and his play over the subsequent two seasons proved to be just as sturdy (and just as undistinguished) as it had been when he last suited up for the Bucks.

His game had seen slight improvements, but no great leaps; Ilyasova's conservative growth was perfectly in line with what Milwaukee could have expected, and he returned just in time to bolster the bench during the most successful year of the Bogut-Jennings era.

A series of injuries robbed the Bucks of a chance at a proper encore, and again, Ilyasova had slid comfortably into a role as an accessory—so much so that when the lockout threatened to again send him overseas, there wasn't an eye batted or a tear shed. 

Such it is with the NBA's supporting parts; each may be unique in their own way, but too often are these staples of the game overlooked for their inability to touch the spectacular. Ilyasova wasn't at all indispensable, but a fresh look at a new player isn't always worth the the clean break of another's departure.

Although in this particular instance, that was certainly the case. Ilyasova departed for his native Turkey, and when the NBA season finally began in earnest, the Bucks made a new addition: an evolved and completely necessary Ersan Ilyasova.

Nothing in Ilyasova's transformation makes particular sense, and yet here we are. The Bucks' shot-creators have improved, but not enough to make sense of Ilyasova's massive jump in shooting percentages.

The lack of rebounding competition on the front line may explain some of his statistical increases, but there's a gulf between inflated numbers and Ilyasova's currently ridiculous marks.

Call his current campaign a fluke, call it an oddity, or call it what it is: an awesome improvement that, like many of the best leaps in this game, seemed to happen for precisely no reason at all.

There's no story behind the fact that Ilyasova has suddenly become one of the league's elite rebounders, even though his in-and-out NBA journey would set up a hell of a tale.

There wasn't a training montage or a coach who gave him a new role; there was merely Ilyasova, working as hard as ever, cutting and battling his way into position for put-back attempts and rebounding opportunities.

He's grown into the kind of player for whom a tip-in is the default, barring the specific efforts of an opponent to box him out.

He only takes shots he can make, and although that isn't radically different from the Ilyasova we've long known, he's working harder to make himself available near the rim than ever before. His cutting is still top-notch, but has changed subtly as he's grown more comfortable with NBA offenses. Sometimes, it's that simple.

Ilyasova still drops in threes and mid-range jumpers aplenty, but it's those cuts to the rim and offensive rebounds that have changed his game. It's the kind of in-game grit and command that doesn't manifest itself in an immediately laudable way, but nonetheless bears out in terms of overall performance.

Ilyasova is rebounding at a fairly gaudy level, uses possessions as if they were a precious resource and has improved his overall efficiency by a fairly shocking margin. We've seen Ilyasova's PER jump from 14.4 to 20.5 in a single season, when few, if any, pegged him for any notable improvement.

Although he hasn't wholly reinvented his game or done something as specifically praiseworthy as cutting the long two-pointers out of his repertoire, he's made enough subtle shifts across the board to warrant ample recognition and praise.

Ilyasova's improvements still may not make him completely indispensable to the Bucks, but as he continues on his current course, he certainly nears that level. His unexpected rise deserves your attention, and to the relevant voting parties, some serious consideration on your awards ballot.

Or not; the Most Improved Player award is by far the silliest of all of the NBA's major honors, and although Ilyasova has a better case to make than most, we would be mistaken to put much currency in the award's designated winner.

Every year, there are countless NBA players getting better for very different reasons at very different stages in their careers, and this season, Ilyasova is merely one among them. His climb has been remarkable, but it's justified in his on-court value, not a league-issued paperweight.

There was no reason to believe that Ilyasova might be as productive as he is today, but regardless of whether he's even considered for the league's most arbitrary hardware, he's already won.

He's scoffed at the idea of being a known quantity, and at the age of 24, has shown an entirely new level of value without betraying the off-ball sensibilities that earned him an NBA role in the first place.