Philadelphia 76ers: 3 deals to send Matisse Thybulle to the Dallas Mavericks

The Philadelphia 76ers are now three days into the new league year and have already made a few additions. P.J. Tucker and Danuel House have now reunited with both President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey and star James Harden in Philadelphia, while another former Rocket, Trevelin Queen, has joined the team as well.

While the Sixers made some expected moves, the Tucker and House signings, in particular, the team has yet to make a trade-in that time despite the rumors that have surrounded the team all offseason. Tobias Harris’s name has been thrown around quite a bit, as has Furkan Korkmaz, as both have been rumored as potential salary dumps (something that has since been reported to not interest Philly). There is one player, though, who has been discussed and even continues to be.

Atop the rumor list for the Philadelphia 76ers is two-time NBA All-Defense team member Matisse Thybulle. Last week, Bleacher Report’s Jake Fischer reported that Thybulle has been most often mentioned in conversations with the Portland Trail Blazers and the Dallas Mavericks, and now, after the signing of Gary Payton II, the Trail Blazers may be out on Thybulle leaving the Mavericks as the supposed leaders in the proverbial clubhouse.

The Dallas Mavericks are rumored to be interested in Matisse Thybulle, but do they have the pieces the Philadelphia 76ers want?

Although they don’t look incredibly intimidating on paper (save for Luka Dončić, of course), and yet the Dallas Maverick made it all the way to the Western Conference Finals last season. The role players whom Philadelphia would ideally target carried the team into the postseason certainly impressed, but the uneven performance against the Golden State Warriors made it clear that the Mavericks are still a few pieces away.

Another scoring option and a big-man were both needs for Dallas, and they’ve answered those needs in the form of Christian Wood. They do, however, still need an athletic perimeter defender for the wing.

Matisse Thybulle has his faults, but he certainly has been one of the better perimeter defenders in the league since he was drafted in 2019. His offensive game leaves much to be desired, but defensively he’s thoroughly impactful, which is exactly what Dallas needs on that end. It all comes down to Philadelphia getting enough to make the move worth their while.