Joel Embiid Endorses Matisse Thybulle's Offensive Improvement
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Coming into the NBA, former Washington wing Matisse Thybulle was viewed as an elite defender leaving the NCAA. By the end of his four-year run with the Huskies, Thybulle held multiple Defensive Player of the Year accolades and led the NCAA in steals during his final season.
The story was no different when he joined the Philadelphia 76ers in 2019. While he was in and out of the rotation at times during his rookie effort, Thybulle held an important role early on as his defense transitioned well to the next level.
Fast forward three years into his pro career and Thybulle has been named to the NBA All-Defensive Second Team twice while averaging fewer than 26 minutes on the court through three seasons.
As long as Thybulle’s defense remains strong, he’ll always find a way to garner minutes on the court. However, his lack of offensive value has sometimes made it hard for the Sixers to get him in.
Through three years, Thybulle hasn’t posed a threat as a scorer. In 196 games, he’s averaged under five points. While the Sixers were hopeful Thybulle could grow into a Danny Green 2.0 by becoming a consistent three-point shooter on the offensive end, the former first-rounder has only averaged 32 percent from beyond the arc.
Going into the 2022 offseason, Thybulle made it a priority to work even harder on improving his offensive skill set. Sneak peeks into the veteran’s offseason workouts showed Thybulle was getting better at finishing at the rim and dribbling.
When media day rolled around on Monday, Sixers head coach Doc Rivers praised Thybulle for being one of three young Sixers that seemed to have outworked everybody this offseason. So, is the hard work paying off so far in training camp? Joel Embiid believes so.
“I’m so proud of him,” said Embiid on Thursday after practice. “So far, you can tell he’s put in the work all summer. He’s been amazing.”
As important as training camp and the preseason is, NBA players will tell you that these sessions and games won’t mirror exactly what will happen during the regular season and the playoffs. Embiid understands that much when it comes to Thybulle, but he cannot help but feel proud.
“Obviously, he needs to keep going when it matters, but he’s made a lot of improvement, and that’s what we want,” Embiid finished. “That’s what we want from everybody on this team, and he’s been doing an amazing job.”
Garnering minutes this upcoming season shouldn’t be difficult for Thybulle, as his defense will earn him playing time off the bench. But if the fourth-year veteran can finally hit his stride on the offensive end, he’ll make a case to become a future starter and earn a solid contract.
Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.
