During the past offseason, the Philadelphia 76ers bolstered their lineup around stars Joel Embiid and James Harden by acquiring De'Anthony Melton from the Memphis Grizzlies and prying away PJ Tucker from the team that eliminated them in last season's playoffs, the Miami Heat. However, as a result, Matisse Thybulle, one crucial fixture of last season's Sixers rotation, has seen his role dwindle considerably over the course of the 2022-23 campaign.
Thybulle is currently averaging a career low in minutes per game – even less than his rookie season – at 11.9 despite making three starts across 16 games. But it's not as if the 25-year old wing has forgotten to do what he's best at when he's on the court.
Thybulle is still as disruptive as ever, as he's averaging 2.5 steals and 1.0 block per 36 minutes, somewhat in line with his career numbers. (For his career, Thybulle is averaging 2.6 steals and 1.6 blocks per 36).
Nonetheless, Thybulle has become borderline unplayable still, due to his offense that seems to not have improved a lick since entering the league back in 2019.
In 16 games played, Matisse Thybulle is shooting a frigid 29 percent from the field and an even worse 20 percent from beyond the arc, prompting Sixers head coach Doc Rivers to play Georges Niang and Danuel House Jr. more minutes than him.
And with Thybulle being phased out of the Sixers rotation, perhaps Philly could be open to a trade, especially when he's in the last year of his rookie-scale contract. It's only a matter of which team could stomach playing four-on-five on offense for the majority of his minutes or maybe even maximize his skillset as a solid enough finisher at the rim.
Here are three teams that could utilize a player of Matisse Thybulle's skillset.
Golden State Warriors
The Warriors, to put it bluntly, have been dreadful to begin their title defense. Through 18 games, the Warriors have mustered a mediocre 8-10 record, going 1-9 on the road to begin the season.
A chief reason behind the Warriors' struggles has been their terrible defense, uncharacteristic for a team that's always prided itself in being a stout defensive outfit. At the time of writing, the Warriors are allowing a dreadful 114.1 points per 100 possessions, “good” for 27th in the entire league, per NBA.com. Only the Houston Rockets, San Antonio Spurs, and Detroit Pistons have been worse defensively.
The personnel in the current Warriors roster just isn't suited enough to maintain considerable defensive integrity with Draymond Green on the bench. In 386 minutes without Green, the Warriors' defensive rating plummets to an even worse 117.9 – as putrid as the Spurs' league-worst efforts.
Enter Matisse Thybulle.
Thybulle, for all his flaws, remains an incredible defensive asset. In fact, in his limited minutes, the Sixers' defense improves by almost eight points, going from allowing 112.07 points per 100 possessions to a stifling 104.17, an even better mark than the Milwaukee Bucks' defense. And with Thybulle alongside Joel Embiid, the Sixers' defense grows even stouter, with the team posting a 94.21 defensive rating during the 90 minutes the two have shared.
It may be tough to pair Thybulle and Green together on the court, given their collective lack of scoring ability, but those two combined should get the Warriors' defense to where it aims to be come season's end. The presence of Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, and even Andrew Wiggins, who's shooting around 42 percent from deep, should also mitigate whatever limitations those two may impose on the Warriors' offense.
Sacramento Kings
The Kings are one of the most exciting teams to watch in the NBA today. Led by De'Aaron Fox, Domantas Sabonis, and the emergent Kevin Huerter, the Kings have won seven in a row, their latest effort being a 113-109 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies. The statistics back up the eye test – the Kings now lead the NBA in offensive rating at 118.6, and it's difficult to argue with the results of their explosive scoring outbursts.
But for them to take the leap into serious playoff contention, Sacramento must fortify its defense. Their defense is currently ranked 25th in the entire league as they allow opponents to score 113.9 points per 100 possessions.
For all of the talent on the Kings roster, they lack a lockdown perimeter defender that could take on the opponent's best scorer. Davion Mitchell is the closest the Kings have to a legitimate on-ball pest, but he's only 6'2 and might be overmatched against bigger wings. Meanwhile, Harrison Barnes has never been known for his defense and Keegan Murray, despite showing flashes of being a plus defender, is still learning the ropes at 22 years old.
Thus, a Matisse Thybulle addition could help the Kings immensely.
Memphis Grizzlies
The Grizzlies are much like the other teams mentioned; their defense just hasn't been up to par to begin the season, although that could be attributed to the absence of Jaren Jackson Jr. early in the campaign. The absence of Desmond Bane has also forced the Grizzlies to rely on rookies Jake LaRavia and David Roddy for more minutes than expected early in their careers.
In particular, the Grizzlies have struggled with Roddy on the floor, with Memphis being 24 points worse when the 6'6 forward is on the court. With the Grizzlies having high hopes of competing for a championship, giving a player who seems unprepared to contribute at the highest level significant minutes might not be the best idea.
Therefore, placing an inquiry on Matisse Thybulle's availability could be a shrewd move for the Grizzlies brass.
Thybulle seems to fit the Grizzlies' “grit and grind” franchise culture to a T. Moreover, in a hypothetical scenario where Thybulle lands in Beale Street, perhaps he could even be their new Tony Allen and become beloved for his suffocating defensive efforts.
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