Are Both Trail Blazers on Team Australia Locks to Make Olympic Roster?
A pair of Portland Trail Blazers players are looking to ply their wares for Team Australia in the 2024 Paris Olympics this summer: rookie center Duop Reath and veteran swingman Matisse Thybulle. But will both Blazers make the Boomers' final cut, when the personnel tally is trimmed from its current 17-man roster to the mandatory 12-man roster?
Olgun Uluc of ESPN votes in the affirmative for both cases, though he has some reservations about Thybulle following a shaky World Cup run last summer for the Boomers. Uluc raves about Reath's ability to fill out the frontcourt while also offering some spacing as a stretch big. Both Reath and Thybulle were members of Australia's bronze medal-winning group at the "2020" Tokyo Olympics (which actually transpired in 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic).
"Reath gives the Boomers much-needed depth at the five-spot, and the shooting piece of his game -- 35.9 percent from downtown this NBA season, on 3.6 attempts a contest -- means he can slide down to the four if needed, depending on matchups," Uluc writes. "He was part of the bronze medal winning team in Tokyo, and has demonstrated vast improvement since then; now coming off an impressive rookie season with the Portland Trail Blazers. The feeling is still that Landale is the starting five, but Reath's evolution has made it a battle; regardless, he's an extremely important piece of this group."
Reath, 27, finally broke through to the NBA in 2023-24, and quickly ascended from a two-way slot to a standard 15-man roster spot as he flashed plenty of ability backing up Deandre Ayton. Across 68 contests (20 starts), the 6-foot-11 big man averaged 9.1 points on a .461/.359/.742 slash line, 3.7 rebounds, one assist and 0.6 blocks in just 17.9 minutes. Since going undrafted out of LSU in 2018, Reath had played for the Serbian League, Australia's NBL, the CBA, and the West Asia Super League, before finally latching on with Portland thanks in part to a strong 2023 Summer League showing.
Thybulle's limitations as a scorer were on full display last year, but his All-Defensive ability on the other end makes him useful for the Boomers. Last year, Thybulle averaged 5.4 points on .397/.346/.759 shooting splits, 2.1 rebounds, 1.7 steals, 1.4 assists and 0.8 blocks, mostly as a reserve, for a terrible Trail Blazers team.
"The World Cup was a tournament to forget for Thybulle, but we've seen at times how effective his game can be in the FIBA environment," Uluc notes. "The shooting remains his swing skill, but he's coming off another reasonable season from beyond the arc: 34.6 percent, on 3.6 attempts a game with the Trail Blazers over the 2023-24 campaign. The defensive versatility, of course, is where Thybulle fills a need for this team; he can guard one-through-four, and his activity can help facilitate the faster paced style of play Goorjian is searching for. Thybulle's role will likely be situational; he could start at the four if needed, or be a defensive spark plug off the bench. Both Thybulle and the Boomers are hoping for, and expecting, a bounce-back campaign."
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ALEX KIRSCHENBAUM
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