The Philadelphia 76ers present nightmarish defensive options for opponents and their reputation just got validated as Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, and Matisse Thybulle were all named to All-Defensive teams Monday night. The Sixers' triumvirate has been key to the team's success as each member played like a lockdown lord all season long.
While Embiid and Simmons' inclusion was already expected, the selection of Thybulle came as a surprise to many fans outside of Sixers Nation. The 6-foot-5 swingman gets easily overshadowed by his more celebrated teammates but it's about to change moving forward.
In fact, Thybulle even made NBA history by playing the fewest minutes per game out of every All-Defensive Team selection ever, per Stathead.
25-or-fewer MPG on @NBA All-Defensive teams, per @Stathead.@sixers @MatisseThybulle averaged 20.0 minutes per contest this season. pic.twitter.com/UoQxJ4QxZE
— Sixers Stats (@SixersStats) June 14, 2021
This speaks volumes on Thybulle's potential. He's only played in two seasons but has already carved a niche with the Sixers as one of the league's best defenders. This season, he only started in eight out of the 65 games where he played.
In spite of the minute limitation, Thybulle still made serious damage on the defensive end as he averaged 1.6 steals and 1.1 blocks per game in the regular season. With potentially more playing time in the years to follow, Sixers fans must be frothing over the defensive numbers Thybulle will be producing.
Thybulle was drafted in 2019 carrying an elite defensive resume from college. The Sixers probably didn't see such a feat being accomplished this quick but they're not complaining.
Aside from Thybulle's ridiculous record, it's worth noting that the average age of the Sixers' All-Defensive Team members is only 25 years old.
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