Matisse Thybulle To Remain In Portland
Matisse Thybulle will not be leaving Portland. The Trail Blazers today matched the 3-year, $33 million offer sheet that the former 76er signed with the Dallas Mavericks. Adrian Wojnarowski confirmed the Joe Cronin is matching the RFA’s offer sheet:
The Portland Trail Blazers are matching restricted free agent Matisse Thybulle’s three-year, $33 million offer sheet with the Dallas Mavericks, sources tell ESPN. Sheet was signed and received in Portland this morning. pic.twitter.com/5WEqjCO18w
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) July 6, 2023
The two-time All Defense selection looked like a change of scenery was just what he needed. Before the trade to Portland he was known as one of the most frustrating players for Philly fans. However, he was a new player in the Pacific Northwest. In 22 games after the trade deadline, he posted career-high averages across the board. He scored 7.4 points per game on a 38.8% clip from deep along with 3.5 rebounds and 1.4 assists. Despite the up and down year in the Rose City, Thybulle could become a new fan-favorite in his first full season. His defensive prowess could match up very nicely with the offensive firepower of Scoot Henderson and Anfernee Simons.
This also is a tough pill to swallow for the Mavs. Along with adding Grant Williams, Thybulle could have been a very good addition. His abilities as a 3&D stopper to let Kyrie and Luka do their thing offensively had some serious potential. However, they will now have to survey the remaining free agents and find someone new to take that role.
More Business At Hand
Retaining Thybulle on that contract is honestly pretty good business. However, there is a much bigger piece of offseason business that needs finishing.
The Damian Lillard saga needs a conclusion. With the Miami Heat the only destination he wants, a trade could be difficult to manufacture. However, there could be as many as four or five teams involved to help facilitate the megadeal. Cronin may publicly go against Dame’s wishes, but it shouldn’t be like that. He has a lot of exciting pieces for this rebuild and Miami has assets that will only help them more. The sooner a deal is done, the better it is for all parties involved.
The Trail Blazers, perhaps unsurprisingly, matched the Mavericks offer sheet for Matisse Thybulle. However, Portland’s offseason is far from over.
