PHILADELPHIA — Former Philadelphia 76ers, now Portland Trail Blazers, wing Matisse Thybulle made his second return to the City of Brotherly Love on Sunday night looking to continue to grow in Portland.
The Sixers traded Thybulle to the Blazers at the 2023 deadline as part of a four-team deal that netted them Jalen McDaniels. While McDaniels is with the Toronto Raptors, Thybulle is still in Portland and looking to continue to develop as a player.
After the Sixers defeated the rebuilding Blazers 126-98, Thybulle gave a lot of love to Joel Embiid who had 35 points, 15 rebounds, seven assists, and six blocks in a dominant effort.
“You really just kinda see that there is no answer for him when he decides to turn it on that it’s one of those unstoppable forces,” Thybulle said of Embiid. “The more he’s able to do that, the more success they’re going to have as a team because, like I said, there’s not a lot of answers for him.”
Thybulle turned his attention to Maxey, who is morphing into an All-Star caliber player with the way he has improved. He had 26 points, made four triples, and was a perfect 10-for-10 from the foul line on Sunday.
“Tyrese has always had that star power,” Thybulle beamed. “Now that his green light gets brighter, he gets the keys to this team, I think we’re just going to see more and more how potent he really is on offense.”
When Thybulle was in Philadelphia, he was a well-liked player within the team. He always had a smile on his face. He did what was asked of him and he also changed games for the Sixers with his defensive work. The Blazers thought the same of him when they matched the offer sheet he signed with the Dallas Mavericks in the offseason.
“It was great to see Matisse,” Maxey said. “I love that guy, seriously. I sent him a text when he got his money. I’m really happy for him, honestly. He works his tail off, great guy; he’s nice to everybody, a great dude. I’m really happy for him, honestly man. I think it’s a great situation for him and he’s out there playing and he’s having a good time while doing it.”
When Thybulle was introduced in the Portland starting lineup on Sunday, the Wells Fargo Center crowd gave him a warm welcome back. He enjoyed that as he still feels a connection to the city.
“I still love this city,” he said with his trademark smile. “I still feel like part of my heart’s in this city. It was my introduction to the NBA, first time really leaving home, and I really felt like I put down some roots out here and it did feel like home, so yeah, I still got a lot of love for this city.”
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