Matisse Thybulle provides more coverage than media during the NBA Finals. His timing and defensive instincts are terrific and he is long enough to disrupt EVERYTHING. As of December 27th, Matisse has as many steals as Kawhi Leonard (43), is averaging as many steals per game as Pat Beverley, Paul George, and Anthony Davis, ranks in the top 13 in terms of Defensive Rating (ahead of the likes of Bam Adebayo, former Defensive Player of the Year Dwight Howard, and Domantas Sabonis). Thybulle also averages only 17.6 minutes per game this season, which is by far the lowest of any player with the type of defensive numbers he is putting up. It’s not just steals and blocks either: 4:17 - 5:18 of this video is just him drawing offensive fouls.
If Thybulle can continue to progress with his 3 point shoot and steady decision making off the bounce, he can turn into the ultimate 3 and D guy for the 76ers. That plus the fact that he can feature in lineups with the likes of Joel Embiid, Ben Simmons, Al Horford, Josh Richardson, Tobias Harris, James Ennis, Mike Scott, Furkan Korkmaz, and more…that’s just a LOT of length and size to have to deal with. They suffocate driving lanes and passing angles are there for a moment and then are turnovers the next. Philly is a PROBLEM.
I watched an interview where Mike Hopkins, then a first year Head Coach at the University of Washington, talked about his coaching staff suggest putting Matisse at the top of their zone (Hopkins was a former player of Jim Boeheim’s at Syracuse and a longtime assistant there) and how that unlocked everything for them in Thybulle’s senior year. Matisse led all NCAA D-1 players with 126 steals on the season and ranked in the top 10 NATIONALLY in blocks. His record breaking final year in college had him breaking defensive benchmarks set by the likes of Gary Payton and Jason Kidd. His 3.5 steals and 2.3 blocks per game ranks the best amongst very elite company: only Duke’s Shane Battier (1999-2000 and 2000-2001) and Kentucky’s Nerlens Noel (2012-13) have averaged at least 2.0 steals and 2.0 blocks per game in a season. He finished as the ONLY player in Washington Huskies history in the top 10 in both career steals and blocks.
Extra props to Z Highlights.
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