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Dario Saric is a must-own fantasy player with Ilyasova traded to Atlanta

Bill Streicher / USA TODAY Sports

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Here are the fantasy implications following the news that the Atlanta Hawks have allegedly acquired SF/PF Ersan Ilyasova from the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for C Tiago Splitter:

The biggest beneficiary is Sixers rookie SF/PF Dario Saric, who has basically been groomed under Ilyasova to take over floor-spacing duties in the Joel Embiid-led offense. He's currently averaging 12.5 points, 6.1 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.3 3s over his past two months. Without having to split minutes with Ilyasova, Saric will see increased production across the board.

A conservative estimate for Saric's averages would be 14 points, seven rebounds, three assists with some 3s and steals. His shooting percentages aren't going to wow you -- he's shot 41% from the field, 30.1% on 3s and 78.9% on free-throws since Dec. 23 -- but the sheer volume of minutes means that his value as a top-100 fantasy player is all but assured.

Embiid -- if he's healthy enough to play down the stretch -- will have to overcome increased defensive pressure. Saric's outside shooting is still a work in progress and a sizable downgrade from Ilyasova. Embiid will have to overcome the presence of help defenders in the paint with greater regularity.

PG T.J. McConnell, who had averaged 1.7 assists per game to Ilyasova alone since Dec. 23 will see a drop in his production as well.

Splitter, the oft-injured big acquired in the trade, may never play a meaningful minute in Philadelphia.

In head-to-head leagues where the fantasy playoffs begin on Mar 13., the Sixers have 10 games remaining in the "regular season" and 11 games spread across the three playoff weeks. That makes them one of the teams with the most viable fantasy games left on the schedule, behind only the Bucks, Clippers and Wizards.

Ilyasova, who had been averaging a career-high 14.3 points -- with 5.9 rebounds, 1.7 assists and two made-3-pointers per game -- becomes a valuable bench player for the playoffs-bound Hawks, but there's no way that he sees anywhere close to the 27.3 minutes per game that made him a top-120 fantasy player during his brief tenure in Philadelphia.

As is the case for newly-acquired Wizard Bojan Bogdanovic, Ilyasova goes from being a focal point in an awful offense to being a supporting scorer. The Hawks' star duo of PF Paul Millsap and C Dwight Howard account for 66.4% of all available frontcourt minutes. Look for Ilyasova to see close to 20 minutes per game -- and more in matchups that call for the spacing his shot brings; he shot 35.9% on 3-pointers in Philadelphia.

The Hawks will be able to play him alongside Millsap in small ball lineups or use his play-making from the perimeter to create space for Howard. In either case, he won't see anywhere near 12.2 shots per game. His outside shooting should still be a viable source of 3-pointers in category formats but he's no better than a streaming option in points leagues, as well as a matchup-dependent daily fantasy play.

(Photos courtesy: Action Images)

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