Sixers: Where does Timothe Luwawu Cabarrot fit in next season?

By Chuck Booth | Apr 17, 2017

Apr 6, 2017; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot (20 shoots against Chicago Bulls forward Cristiano Felicio (6) and guard Denzel Valentine (45) during the fourth quarter at Wells Fargo Center. The Chicago Bulls won 102-90. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /

Looking at the Sixers 2016/17 rookie class, it’s tough to say that anyone showed more improvement during the season than Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot.

The man lovingly known as TLC was drafted as an athletic toolsy wing who definitely would be a project for the Sixers. He began the season being shuttled back and forth between the Delaware 87ers and the Philadelphia 76ers. Once he got a little experience with the club Timothe Luwawu-Cabarrot stuck in the NBA and didn’t look back.

Over the season, TLC averaged 6.4 points per game, 2.1 rebounds per game, and 1.1 assists per game while logging 17.2 minutes per game and appearing in 69 games over the course of the season. These numbers while solid, don’t do justice to TLC’s numbers for the Sixers, however. To get a full picture, you need to break down his performances on a month-by-month basis.

From October to December, TLC only played in 20 games for the Sixers and averaged less than 10 minutes per game in each month. Because of that, he was never able to find his rhythm and the Frenchman averaged less than three points per game in each month. While TLC was struggling to adjust to the league, Brett Brown took the patient approach with Luwawu-Cabarrot in order for him to get his feet wet in the league.

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In the month of January, when the Sixers posted their best record of any month going 10-5, Luwawu-Cabarrot received his first bump in minutes of the season. For January and February, TLC saw his minutes per game jump to about 15. He responded by averaging about five points per game but more important was his growing confidence on the court as his field goal percentage jumped to 41.4 percent, a large improvement from 34.2 percent in the prior two months.

It’s a testament to Brett Brown’s strength in coaching young players but the best was yet to come for TLC. Due to injuries, his minutes were slowly ratcheted up as the season continued until the month of April which should be dubbed the TLC coming out party.

Averaging 33.7 minutes per game, TLC dropped 18.3 points per game while also shooting the ball at a 44.9 percent clip. While numbers at the end of the season should be taken with a grain of salt due to teams either resting stars or tanking, this is an impressive stat line while he improved his numbers across the board. Luwawu-Cabarrot also locked in on the defensive end averaging 1.8 steals per game and 3.3 rebounds per game during the month of April as well.

With his inherent athleticism, it’s no surprise that Brett Brown labeled Luwawu-Cabarrot as one of his “keepers” at his presser to end the season. When asked about Luwawu-Cabarrot, here’s what Brown had to say,

"“Look at Timothe [Luwawu-Cabarrot’s] stats after the All-Star break and the minutes that he had and the volume of points that he was able to score after that experience,”"

As Brown stated, Luwawu-Cabarrot truly established himself after the all-star break and has cemented himself as a member of the Sixers in the future. While TLC will need to work on his three-point shot as he only shot 31.1 percent from behind the arc, there is a lot to like about his game. TLC is also aware that is shot needs improvement and recognition is the first step in fixing it.

"“Ben and Joel, obviously they’re going to have the ball a lot,” Luwawu-Cabarrot said. “So I have to work and be consistent with my shot and to able to knock it down when I get it. That’s what [the coaching staff] asked me to work on.”"

Thanks to his experience playing Euro ball, Luwawu-Cabarrot is an explosive wing with the ability to play in the high paced offense that the Sixers would like to play. If he can stay locked in on the defensive end while improving his jumper next season, Luwawu-Cabarrot could surprise a lot of people next season.

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The Sixers will be employing a crowded rotation but Luwawu-Cabarrot is versatile enough to play both shooting guard and small forward. This means that even with Ben Simmons running the point in the 2017/18 season, there will be rotational space for Luwawu-Cabarrot to earn. The offseason and summer league will be key but Luwawu-Cabarrot is set up well to succeed.

TLC came into his own this season but at 21, there is a lot of room to grow. If he can reach his potential, Luwawu-Cabarrot may end up being the Sixers steal of the draft.