Matisse Thybulle reportedly did not sign a rookie-scale contract extension with the Sixers before Monday's deadline, meaning the 25-year-old will become a restricted free agent following this season.
Yahoo Sports' Chris Haynes reported that Thybulle and the Sixers did not reach a deal. The two sides “briefly held discussions on the possibility of an extension recently but were unable to come to an agreement,” Haynes reported.
Zion Williamson, Tyler Herro, Jordan Poole, Nassir Little, Brandon Clarke and Kevin Porter Jr. are among the players from the 2019 draft class who have signed extensions. The Sixers traded the 24th and 33rd picks that year to the Celtics in order to land Thybulle, who was taken 20th.
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Per Spotrac, Thybulle's qualifying offer for the 2023-24 season is approximately $6.3 million. He'll play this year under his fourth-year club option of $4.4 million.
Thybulle has made the NBA's All-Defensive Second Team in two consecutive years. Despite his special defensive skills, it's remained reasonable to wonder whether Thybulle is capable of helping teams win deep in the playoffs. He's aimed to avoid unwise gambles and improve his jumper, but Thybulle's reliability as a two-way wing is still questionable. Over the last two seasons, he's shot 30.7 percent from three-point range.
After starting in every game since the Sixers' February trade for James Harden last season, Thybulle was ineligible to play on April 7 in Toronto because he was not fully vaccinated against COVID-19. The Sixers then drew the Raptors in the first round of the playoffs. Thybulle could only participate in three of the series' six games and his role decreased.
“Missing games in the playoffs was much harder than missing games in the regular season," he said on May 8. “I had no concept of what that would be like — especially missing games and then going from the starting lineup to coming off the bench. So yeah, it was massive. I definitely didn’t think it was going to affect me as much as it did. ... It definitely had an impact.”
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At the Sixers' media day this year, head coach Doc Rivers said no Sixer outworked Tyrese Maxey, Paul Reed and Thybulle this summer. The University of Washington product said he focused on "condensing my shot down — getting rid of wasted movement, which allows for more accuracy and consistency.”
“I didn’t really have a chance to work on myself the last two offseasons," Thybulle said. “The first one was COVID and there were no (available) gyms. The second one, I was working to win a medal at the Olympics with Australia, so there wasn’t a lot of space for me to just work on Matisse. So this was my first chance to have a whole offseason — a real, traditional offseason — and dedicate it solely to improving myself.”
With summer additions P.J. Tucker, De'Anthony Melton and Danuel House Jr. appearing firm members of Rivers' rotation for the time being, Thybulle did not appear in the Sixers' preseason finale until the fourth quarter. The team will open its regular season on Tuesday night against the Celtics in Boston.