The Philadelphia 76ers secured a solid victory on Thursday to end 2020 with a 116-92 victory over the Orlando Magic. It was a game featuring an offensive clinic from Philadelphia, including a triplet of star Ben Simmons.
Another nice development was the fact that Matisse Thybulle played well in his first real minutes of the season. The Sixers are currently a deeper team and Thybulle have yet to make a dive into new coach Doc Rivers.
With Furkan Korkmaz outside, however, Thybulle received an opportunity and he did not waste it. He had nine points and four rebounds while hitting two from the depths, and his usual excellent defense was there as well.
“We told him that from the beginning,” Rivers said. ‘Matisse will be a key player for this basketball team. I thought his first half was phenomenal on both sides. The second half I was a little upset because he did, I think two tries he passed and tried to drive, and I told him if you’re open, let it fly. He did it in the first half, but defensively, in the second half, he was phenomenal on (Cole) Anthony. Anthony is very aggressive and he was phenomenal tonight. ”
Thybulle was fully in Brett Brown’s revolution as a rookie as he earned time thanks to his phenomenal defense. This is not the case now among Rivers, and he understands that, as time goes on, he will have to earn his place. This is now his chance to do so.
“I would say it’s pretty similar to what happened last year,” Thybulle said. ‘I have to fight for a place in the rotation and it’s hit and miss or miss, so this is nothing new. I did not enter the season with expectations of being on the floor, based on what I did last year. I knew I would have to earn it, and I think I’m doing it right now. ”
As for his offense, everyone understands that he is not yet up there at the end of the floor. He needs to continue working on the aspect of his game. The nine points were his first points of the season after being scoreless in the first four games of the season.
“Just a feeling out there,” he added. “These are my first buckets of the season. Just to get a feel, and the more minutes I get, the more comfortable we get out there on the track. I think it will come. I think we all grow up and try to figure out where our shots are, what are the best shots, and as you can see, I go through that as we talk. ”