Potential Sixers starting lineup without Ben Simmons No. 2
- Seth Curry
- Danny Green
- Matisse Thybulle
- Tobias Harris
- Joel Embiid
Whereas Tyrese Maxey can best offset Simmons’ absence on offense, Matisse Thybulle can best offset his absence on defense. The 6-foot-5 Thybulle doesn’t quite replicate Simmons’ versatility, but he’s as good — if not better — defending guards one-on-one. Thybulle made second team All-Defense despite playing 20 minutes per game last season. He led the Sixers in total steals and total blocks, and would be positioned to dominate those categories even more as a starter.
You could very reasonably argue that Thybulle’s wide-ranging impact on the defense would outweigh Maxey’s offensive contributions — at least in the regular season, when Philadelphia has traditionally been able to work around dodgy halfcourt offense. It becomes a bigger problem in the playoffs, but the Sixers no doubt intend to trade Simmons before the trade deadline. These are temporary solutions.
Seth Curry has been the stopgap point guard on occasion in the past, and he averaged a career-high 2.7 assists per game last season. He’s not a dynamic ball-handler, and he’s not exactly putting constant pressure on the rim, but can dribble. It’s not as though Philadelphia wouldn’t be able to rely on him and Tobias Harris to bring the ball up and initiate the offense.
This lineup also keeps Maxey in more of a sixth man role, where his defensive shortcomings are given less of a spotlight and he can help elevate units that do not have Joel Embiid. Behind the big fella and Harris, Maxey is the Sixers’ best source of shot creation. Staggering him might make sense, especially if Rivers doesn’t trust his defense and/or the outside shot yet.
Obviously, the drawback here — beyond the lack of a true, bonafide point guard — is Thybulle’s own offensive limitations. Unlike Simmons, he will actually attempt spot-up 3s, but he’s not a good shooter. Defenses will happily ignore him until he makes them recalibrate. I am more skeptical than most of Thybulle ever becoming even a league-average shooter.