Thybulle Reacts to Block Party Over Hawks on Saturday
Ever since his days at the University of Washington, Matisse Thybulle has established himself as a menace on the defensive side of the ball. After earning the right to be called the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year in 2019, Thybulle received a promise from the Philadelphia 76ers as they wanted to draft him after his stint at Washington.
Sure enough, they did, and it's paid off tremendously on the defensive end. During his rookie year, Thybulle's defense alone earned him steady minutes in the rotation. By year two, he was named NBA All-Defensive Second Team.
In year three, Thybulle has resumed a steady role off the Sixers' bench. And to no surprise, he's been dominant on the defensive side of the ball once again. Through the first six games of the season, Thybulle has averaged 2.3 steals and 1.5 blocks.
On Saturday night, in the matchup against the Atlanta Hawks, the third-year guard once again put on a defensive clinic as he collected four steals and blocked three shots in 23 minutes of action. Of the three blocks he contributed to, two of Thybulle's swats against Atlanta's Cam Reddish created tons of momentum in the first half.
"I just don't give up on the plays, really," Thybulle said after the win. "I think that most of the plays that I make ultimately come from people expecting me to quit when I hit the screen or when I get out of position. So just the fact that I keep pursuing the ball, good things tend to happen. Those plays are really fun, and it leads to great energy and usually good plays on the other end."
Sixers head coach Doc Rivers credited Thybulle for being "great" on Saturday, offering the team tons of momentum. "The whole bench really," Rivers said. "But Matisse just defensively all over the floor, steals, blocks shots, energy, drives offensively, which we work with him every day on, so he's in a great place."
Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.
