NBA Free Agency 2017: 5 offseason targets for the Sacramento Kings

iJun 22, 2017; Brooklyn, NY, USA; De'Aaron Fox (Kentucky) is introduced by NBA commissioner Adam Silver as the number five overall pick to the Sacramento Kings in the first round of the 2017 NBA Draft at Barclays Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports /

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Apr 11, 2017; Atlanta, GA, USA; Atlanta Hawks forward Ersan Ilyasova (7) reaches for a loose ball past Charlotte Hornets forward Michael Kidd-Gilchrist (14) in the second quarter at Philips Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-USA TODAY Sports /

2. Ersan Ilyasova, PF, Atlanta Hawks

To be fair, I did consider Paul Millsap, Blake Griffin and Serge Ibaka before picking Ilyasova. Yes, llyasova’s ceiling isn’t as high as the other three players, but the contract that he would sign for would be a lot friendlier to the team.

Millsap, Griffin and Ibaka would all like to sign max contracts that would likely prohibit the Kings from doing future deals. Those three players aren’t franchise changers and Sacramento would be smarter to go for the long-term rebuild, rather than the quick band-aid fix.

Although Labissiere and Cauley-Stein are listed as power forwards, Labissiere would prefer to stay closer to the basket. The Kings could still use a stretch four that can help speed up the game and also hit from long-range.

That’s where Ilyasova comes into the picture. Although he’s basically made stops at every NBA team, he hasn’t been a Sacramento King yet. So let’s make that happen this offseason! With the Hawks at the end of last year, the power forward averaged 10.4 points and 5.8 rebounds on 41 percent shooting from the field and 35 percent shooting from 3-point range.

He could come off the bench and be a scorer for the Kings and help space the floor and let De’Aaron Fox do his thing. Ilyasova at age 31 would be a lot cheaper than some of the other power forward options for the Kings and make a lot more sense schematically.

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