If there was one player on who went from darling to despised for the 76ers this season, it would be Matisse Thybulle. From his continued offensive struggles to his stance on vaccination, by the end of the year, there were few players Philadelphia fans wanted to talk about less than Thybulle. Despite this hate from the fanbase, the Chicago Bulls are rumored to have interest in the Philadelphia 76ers‘ defensive artist, Matisse Thybulle.
These rumors originated from Heavy.com’s Sean Deveney, who expressed that “Bulls GM Marc Eversley has had a fondness for Thybulle going back to early in his collegiate career at Washington…” Deveney went on to explain that Eversley — who was with the 76ers from 2016 to 2020 — was instrumental in the team drafting Thybulle in the first place.
Many may be comfortable with the idea of trading Thybulle, but the question still lingers, what would you get for him? While some may feel trading Thybulle is addition by subtraction, Eversley’s interest shows that there is clearly a higher opinion of Thybulle in the league than the fans of Philly hold. So again, the question remains, what type of value is worth a Thybulle deal?
The Chicago Bulls, despite their early postseason exit, do have multiple role players that could interest Daryl Morey. Fellow defensive studs Alex Caruso and Javonte Green are quality targets, while Coby White could provide an opportunity for a “change of scenery” deal.
The apple of Daryl Morey’s eye, however — assuming he discusses a Thybulle deal with — will certainly be young star Zach LaVine. As unrealistic as it sounds, there is a chance a deal could be discussed for Chicago’s high-flyer. Everything would have to break right for the Philadelphia 76ers for this to happen; everything.
If LaVine truly wants to move on from Chicago and would like to play alongside the likes of Joel Embiid and James Harden, the path to this deal opens up. From there, it’s a simple matter of convincing Marc Eversley that LaVine wants out, Thybulle, Harris, and a first — or something to that effect — are the best you’re going to do.
Now, one could make the argument that perhaps a trade exception or a player from a third team would interest Chicago more than Harris, and perhaps that’s the case, but at this point, that’s much ado about nothing. Obviously, a LaVine trade is the least likely outcome of this situation, but that’s how Daryl Morey has always approached trade negotiations. Start at the top and work your way down. Still, the concept that at least one team out there could be proactively interested in Matisse Thybulle should be considered good news.
Thybulle is due for a new contract at the end of the season, and it’s unlikely that Philadelphia would — nor should they — compete with the open market for Thybulle’s services. This is now one more wrinkle to an already interesting offseason for the Philadelphia 76ers.
