Sixers: Is it time to bring Matisse Thybulle off the bench?

Matisse Thybulle is on track for his second All-Defense nomination in three NBA seasons. He is arguably the most impactful pound-for-pound defender in the NBA. He can lock up ball-handlers at the point of attack, or play free safety and terrorize passing lanes. He’s averaging 1.8 steals and 1.1 blocks in only 26.4 minutes per game. Pretty impressive!

That said, Thybulle is also the Sixers‘ worst offensive player. He’s hitting 28.6 percent of his 3s (a career low), he doesn’t have any ball skills to speak of, and even with improved instincts as a cutter, defenses generally don’t need to worry about Thybulle unless he’s right under the basket.

Naturally, when you’re aiming to build the offense around Joel Embiid and his post-ups, the lack of spacing brought on by Thybulle’s presence can be problematic. Now, with James Harden set to join the lineup after the All-Star break, it’s time to transfer Thybulle back to the second unit.

The Sixers should embrace Matisse Thybulle as a sixth man and defensive specialist — not a starting wing.

This is not to say Thybulle shouldn’t play an important role for the Sixers. He is the only reliable perimeter defender on the team right now, and in certain matchups — specifically when the Sixers face small, dynamic guards like Trae Young — Doc Rivers might have to play Thybulle north of 30 minutes regardless of whether or not he’s starting.

That said, Thybulle’s complete lack of offensive skill is poses a problem when the Sixers face elite defenses. There is no better example than last week’s two games — the historic blowout loss to Boston, and the turnaround victory over Milwaukee. The Celtics’ blend of length and mobility completely flustered Philadelphia, and while the issues extended well beyond Thybulle in that game, Boston’s willingness to completely ignore him did not help. It was a similar story in the Milwaukee game, until Rivers replaced Thybulle with Furkan Korkmaz to start the second half. That adjustment changed the chemistry of the game and helped the Sixers emerge victorious.

Of course the Sixers need Thybulle’s defense, and he should probably get 20-25 minutes per game even if he’s coming off the bench. But Doc Rivers has to be more strategic with how he staggers rotations now. Joel Embiid and James Harden are two stars who elevate teammates, but more than that, they elevate elite shooters. The Sixers have multiple quick-trigger deep threats to choose from — Danny Green, Georges Niang, Furkan Korkmaz… even Isaiah Joe. There’s a case to be made for each of them.

The Sixers will (and should) start both Tobias Harris and Tyrese Maxey next to the Embiid-Harden duo. While Harris and Maxey both hit 3s at a respectable clip, neither of them are volume catch-and-shoot threats. Maxey does most of his damage off the dribble, and Harris has always been too willing to pass up open 3s for dribble drives or mid-range pull-ups.

You can play Thybulle next to Embiid and you can play Thybulle next to Harden. Heck, you can play Thybulle next to Embiid and Harden at the same time. But you probably shouldn’t play him next to Embiid, Harden, and Maxey and Harris. There’s only so much oxygen to go around offensively. Embiid and Harden should get most of it, but Maxey and Harris take up oxygen too. They’ll take players off the dribble, set up the offense, and have plays called for them.

To make that work, Doc Rivers has to make better use of the shooters at his disposal — the guys who don’t let the ball stick. Embiid plus four shooters has been Philadelphia’s best offense from day one. Harden plus four shooters also has a great track record. Thybulle mucks up the offense too much. If he gets the ball anywhere beyond five feet of the rim, the defense will ignore him. He’s also a slow decision-maker, which is derived almost entirely from his lack of confidence as a jump shooter.

Thybulle is best situated in lineups with multiple high-level shooters around him. It’s harder for defenses to exploit the Thybulle advantage if Danny Green and Georges Niang are also on the floor, standing behind the 3-point line, ready to fire on command. Doc Rivers’ should look to stagger Embiid and Harden all game. Thybulle should always have one superstar setting him up at all times, but more than that, he shouldn’t have to fit into the offense next to all four of Philadelphia’s core offensive pieces.

There would still be ample opportunities for Thybulle to close games. Again, this is arguably the best defensive wing in basketball. That’s a major tool for Philadelphia. The Sixers just have to be smarter about how he’s deployed now. The benefit of an elite 3-point shooter next to Embiid and Harden probably outweighs the benefit of Thybulle’s defense. Using him more in lineups with only one of Embiid or Harden (and, by extension, with multiple good shooters around him) would help Thybulle, and it would help the Sixers’ superstar duo.