By: Jesse Larch, Sports Talk Philly editor 
When the Sixers traded the draft rights to Elfrid Payton for Dario Saric and other draft assets in 2014 the assumption was that Saric would become another draft-and-stash player that never leaves Europe.
The Croatian power forward silenced that narrative last season when he left the eastern hemisphere to join the Sixers for his first NBA season.
As a rookie Saric became a rookie of the year favorite after he exploded in the second half of the season. After the all-star break last year Saric averaged 6.5 more points, 1.4 more rebounds, and 1.6 more assists.
Now Saric has rediscovered his stellar form from a year ago with an outstanding month of December. Saric averaged 17.3 points, 7.9 rebounds, 3.9 assists, and posted his highest field goal and three-point percentages of the season in the final month of 2017.
The link between the two? Both stretches included a large amount of missed games by star center Joel Embiid. With Embiid out Saric elevates his game and becomes a true impact player. The scary thing about Saric being featured is that he appears to be developing at a rapid rate.
In his rookie season Saric shot 41.1 percent from the field, 31.1 percent from deep, and 78.2 percent at the free throw line. So far this season Saric has a 43.9 field-goal percentage, a 37.2 three-point percentage, and a 85.5 free throw percentage. He has done this while averaging the same number of field goal attempts per game that he averaged as a rookie with 11.4.
Prior to this season there was much speculation about whether or not Saric would be used as a starter or off of the bench. There was even speculation (often by fans) if Saric would even last to the end of the process or if the Sixers would leverage his hot rookie season and leverage it into a blockbuster trade to bring a marquee name to Philadelphia.
Less than halfway through his sophomore season Dario Saric has silenced all of those murmurs. Saric started the season cold after coming off of the bench at the beginning of the year, but once Saric was entered into the starting lineup he has not looked back.
Saric has once again been one of the best players on the floor night in and night out for the Sixers, bringing his blend of grit, energy, and skill that the Sixers have not been able to duplicate.
He has gone from being a role player to a featured player, especially without Embiid. Embiid is a generational talent but his consistent health issues often leave a gaping hole on the floor for the Sixers, a hole that only Saric has come close to filling over the last two seasons.
Saric will never have the impact that Embiid does, but without Saric the team would not a stand a chance when Embiid is sidelined.
Saric has been perhaps the most reliable player for the Sixers over the past two seasons between his durability and his on-court play. A season and a half into his NBA career and one thing is clear – Dario Saric is a part of the Sixers exciting young core, and it's time he gets recognized as such.
