From the doghouse to the starting lineup?
Matisse Thybulle got his first start of the season in Wednesday night’s win over the Houston Rockets. After Ben Simmons was unable to suit up due to an illness, 76ers Head Coach Doc Rivers elected to give last year’s first-round pick the start.
After struggling to get into the rotation earlier in the season, Thybulle has received an increase in minutes, thanks to his defensive expertise. Even with very little offensive output this year, Thybulle has had the responsibility to anchor the defense when Ben Simmons and Joel Embiid are off the floor.
“When you got Matisse in the game, that’s our best defense. I think he has the potential to be the best defender in the league,” Joel Embiid said.
Averaging 17 minutes per game, Thybulle averages 2.8 deflections, and 1.5 steals a game. Per 36 minutes, the Washington product leads the league in deflections (6 per 36 minutes) and steals (3.2). In Wednesday’s first quarter alone, Thybulle had 12 deflections and two steals.
Doc Rivers has looked to incorporate more of a 2-3 zone to get the most out of Thybulle’s defensive versatility. The 2-3 zone was crucial to holding on to the Rockets’ late surge in the 4th quarter.
“As good as he is in the man, he’s even better in the zone because he can float around and use his length,” Rivers said. “We haven’t done it much without Ben on the floor. The Matisse-Ben combination is fantastic, tonight, we did it, and I didn’t plan on doing it long, but once we figured that it caused confusion, we stayed in it.”
With no Simmons last night, Danny Green was at the top of the zone defense with Thybulle and loved his impact in the zone.
“It’s been a lot of fun actually watching him work and working to the side of him,” Forward Danny Green said. “When you play in that zone, he kind of licks his chops and gets ready to go. That’s what he loves to do. It’s what he did in college. He’s a mastermind at it. He knows how to be active, deceptively messes with the offense’s mind, and getting in those passing lanes and getting a lot of deflections. Seeing him work in that zone is amazing.”
With the size and athleticism of Thybulle and Simmons, they could create havoc in passing lanes and contesting shots, especially in a 2-3 zone. With the inconsistency of Danny Green and the recent defensive issues, could the Sixers coaching staff inject Thybulle into the starting lineup?
Thybulle’s offense has taken a pretty significant dip so far this year. His shooting from the field has dropped from 42% last year to 38%, while his three-point percentage has decreased from 35.7% to 28.8%. However, over the previous nine games, Thybulle has shot 35% (6-17) from the three, just slightly below Green’s mark at 37.8%. With Thybulle’s significant defensive ability over Green, the Sixers would be smart to try Thybulle in the starting lineup.
With an improved jump shot, Thybulle could be a star role player for the Sixers starting lineup.
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Categorized:Sixers