Matisse Thybulle Praises Consistently Dominant Joel Embiid

Joel Embiid put on one of his most impressive performances of the 2022-2023 season this past weekend. With the two-time MVP Nikola Jokic becoming his primary opponent as the Sixers faced the Denver Nuggets, it seemed Embiid had a little extra juice from start to finish.

When asked whether he believes Embiid had more motivation going into the matchup considering the circumstances, Philadelphia veteran Matisse Thybulle stated the obvious.

“He has to,” Thybulle said regarding Embiid. “That’s what all the reporters are talking about. That’s what all the commentators are talking about. So, like, man-to-man, he has to win his matchup. When it’s the other best player in the NBA, it’s definitely a challenge that he seems to be up for.”

For the last two years, Jokic and Embiid have been the subjects of a major NBA debate. As the two centers aren’t your typical bigs, Jokic and Embiid’s versatility shines bright as they dominate the NBA. While many have considered Embiid to be the league’s best player, Jokic won MVP voters over for the last two seasons.

On Saturday, two days after Embiid was notified he wouldn’t be an All-Star starter, the big man took out his frustration against Jokic and the Nuggets. While it was one of Embiid’s most impressive performances of the year, it wasn’t anything out of the ordinary.

“It’s an MVP performance, and it feels like we keep seeing them over and over again,” said Thybulle. “His consistency of showing up and showing up big, especially when we need him, is like the best in the NBA.”

Embiid denied that the matchup going against Jokic or the “disrespectful” All-Star voters keeping him out of the starting lineup in Utah this year fueled his Saturday performance. Instead, the big man credited his big game to him being “aggressive coming off a bad game” against the Brooklyn Nets.

Against the Nets, Embiid scored 26 points in 34 minutes. It was the first time the big man failed to exceed 30 points since Philadelphia’s New Year’s Eve matchup against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

How did he follow up? By knocking down 58 percent of his shots, scoring 47 points in 37 minutes. Along with his scoring, Embiid came down with a season-high 18 rebounds and dished out five assists while snatching three steals and swatting two shots on the defensive end.

Winning is the motivation for Embiid this season, and the Sixers did that on Saturday. At this point, a near-50-point performance isn’t anything that’s shocking Thybulle or anybody else on the Sixers because Embiid’s remained highly consistent throughout the year.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.