Matisse Thybulle has played a grand total of four games for the Portland Trail Blazers this season. The now-veteran wing is mere months away from unrestricted free agency with no sign he\u2019s close to a return to the court.<\/p>\n
Though not the only injury-impacted Blazer, the Australian national representative\u2019s absence has been perplexing with the 28-year-old initially sidelined with a thumb injury and now dealing with knee tendinopathy.<\/p>\n
Approaching Thursday\u2019s NBA Trade Deadline, part of me wondered whether the Blazers would try to part with Thybulle. But the deadline came and went and Thybulle remained on the roster with 31 games still to play \u2014 30 after last night.<\/p>\n
If he does play again this season, I can\u2019t see him suiting up in many more than the 15 games he appeared in last season. But there\u2019s also the chance General Manager Joe Cronin taps Thybulle as one of the names to be bought out or waived to make way for one of the roster\u2019s two-way contracted contributors Sidy Cissoko and Caleb Love.<\/p>\n
Today we examine the best way forward for the Blazers and how they handle the oft-injured wing through the rest of the season and into the summer.<\/p>\n
For those who\u2019ve forgotten<\/p>\n
Thybulle is a two-time All Defensive Team honoree who has never finished lower than the 98th percentile in steal rate and never lower than the 92nd percentile in block rate, among wings.<\/p>\n
The 6-foot-5 Thybulle, who boasts a seven-foot wingspan, could have been built in a lab to play defense, packing quick-twitch lateral movement and defensive instincts capable of kicking in within milliseconds. One wonders whether the Blazers could have come closer to fulfilling their preseason defensive potential if Thybulle was able to play more than a handful of games.<\/p>\n
On offense, he\u2019s shown the ability to convert three-pointers, though less reliably than some of the league\u2019s elite wings. Although, through the admittedly small sample of 15 games he managed last season, Thybulle did rank third among wings in non-corner threes at 45 percent. Perhaps something that could become a trend over time upon his return to the court.<\/p>\n
Thybulle owns career averages of 4.9 points on 34.5 percent shooting from three, 2.0 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 1.6 steals. Importantly, since his trade from the Philadelphia 76ers to the the Blazers at the 2023 deadline, those averages have increased to 6.1 points on 37.3 percent shooting from three, 2.5 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 1.8 steals.<\/p>\n
Numbers that if replicated on a consistent basis over the past 18 months, would no doubt have made for interesting viewing.<\/p>\n
Thybulle and his $11.6 million expiring contract have been mentioned<\/a> as a possible candidate for buyout or waiving. Not because he\u2019s necessarily not good enough. But because the Blazers need to get Cissoko, and to a lesser extent Love, on the regular roster in order to keep them on the court. Cissoko has played 47 of his allowable 50 games so the matter is becoming urgent by the day.<\/p>\n