Matisse Thybulle has been mentioned in virtually every conceivable trade package this season. The latest one had him heading to the Brooklyn Nets in a blockbuster package for James Harden.
The Philadelphia 76ers are expected to make one final pitch for the 2018 MVP. Harden wants to take his talents to South Philly, but he won’t formally request a trade. Meanwhile, Sixers players are doing their best to block out the noise at the deadline. Thybulle said he won’t be stalking Adrian Wojnarowski or Shams Charania on Twitter. And he doesn’t plan on sitting at his computer and hitting the refresh button.
“Read books, draw, go on walks,” Thybulle said when asked what he’ll be doing on February 10. “I’ll keep the ringer on in case I get a call. That’s about it.”
Matisse Thybulle on blocking out all the trade rumors. Deadline is set for 3 p.m. today: “For me, it’s pretty simple. I know how to create space in a bubble for me and my mental health.” #Sixers #HereTheyCome
Thybulle knows where he can see all the trade nonsense if he wants to. For now, he is choosing to ignore it.
“You can compartmentalize. A lot of it is self-imposed honestly,” Thybulle said. “If you choose, you know where to go to see that stuff, to see what you guys [the media] are saying and all that stuff. For me, it’s pretty simple. I know how to create space in a bubble for me and my mental health.”
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Thybulle’s Role Growing, Defensive Stopper
The Sixers’ defensive stopper has played a major role with Ben Simmons missing in action. He has been thrown into the starting five and given the tough assignment of guarding the other team’s best scorer every night. It’s a departure from last season when he served as a “tag team guy.”
“I was like this tag team guy for whoever’s best scorer,” Thybulle said. “Whether it was Ben [Simmons] or Danny [Green], or whoever was on him, they would tag me in and I would try and wreak some havoc. But now the assignment has been mine for the whole game. That’s a very new challenge.”
NBA players are shooting 35% FG on average when Matisse Thybulle is their closest defender. That’s the lowest mark in the NBA and the second-lowest in almost a decade!
Thybulle finished 12th in Defensive Player of the Year voting last season. He was selected All-Defensive Second Team. One year later, the 24-year-old has seen his minutes jump up from 20 per game to 26.5.
“It’s been fun. It’s been really, really hard,” Thybulle said. “But it’s just exciting to see my role grow and see how I can grow with it, and continue to get the respect of these players.”
Managing Nagging Shoulder Injury
Thybulle has missed 15 games this season mostly due to a right shoulder sprain. He took a nasty fall and landed awkwardly on January 14 following a breakaway dunk off a steal. The young guard has been managing that nagging injury all season.
Matisse Thybulle took a scary fall vs. the Celtics. 😳
He initially stayed in the game, but eventually left with shoulder soreness.
“Just managing the symptoms,” Thybulle said. “It’s so hard for this schedule, playing every other day almost for most of this stretch, trying to get some real time to rest and recover. This is part of the job and we’ve kind of hit that part of the season where everyone’s a little banged up. So you just take it and roll with it however you can.”
From @KevinOConnorNBA: “Sources say Maxey is totally off the table.”
“I’m told someone like Danny Green is more likely to be included than one of Philly’s young players. Curry is an integral part of the Sixers’ offense, and without Thybulle they’d lack a perimeter stopper.”
Rivers has been starting Thybulle when he’s been healthy. The head coach also likes to pair him up with Danny Green to get two elite defenders with good length on the court together. Ironically, it has reminded Thybulle of playing with Ben Simmons.
“This might sound weird, it gives me like flashbacks of playing with Ben,” Thybulle said. “Having a big-time defender on the court with you, we play off of each other. Obviously, he is his own special category of player but Danny brings a lot of that defensive versatility and savvy vet-ness, and being able to play off of that. And his voice defensively is huge and that’s something that most people don’t really know or get to account for.”
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Sixers’ Defensive Stopper Having ‘Flashbacks’ of Ben Simmons