Matisse Thybulle Set to Return vs. Celtics on Thursday
A late December matchup with the Washington Wizards was the last time Philadelphia 76ers rookie guard Matisse Thybulle saw the court. As his playing time off the bench was beginning to expand, Thybulle was taking advantage of every opportunity coming his way.
Unfortunately, the momentum he was gaining would soon be put on hold. During a win over the Wizards, Thybulle ended up accidentally colliding with his opponent. The contact resulted in what would soon be diagnosed as a bruised knee.
Following the game a few weeks back, Thybulle was visibly upset as he sensed a down period coming just as he was picking up steam in the NBA both defensively and offensively. The following morning, the Sixers' rookie received his evaluation, and the bad news came about. Matisse Thybulle was ruled out indefinitely for his knee injury.
After the news broke, the Sixers issued a two-week timetable before Thybulle's next evaluation. This past Sunday happened to be the two-week mark. Thybulle underwent further assessments on his knee, and it turned out the rookie was making good progress.
However, he wasn't quite ready to return to the court. So after being ruled out for Monday's matchup with the Oklahoma City Thunder, the Sixers intended on easing Thybulle back into practice by upgrading him to a full participant for Tuesday's practice and leaving his Thursday's game status up in the air.
On Tuesday, the Sixers announced that depending on how Thybulle does in practice; there's a real possibility he could return to the court against the Celtics on Thursday. Well, the good news is out, and Thybulle is set to come back.
It's unclear what his role will be on Thursday when the Sixers host Boston. Before going out with the injury, Thybulle was averaging around 22 minutes of playing time off the bench in December. Considering that his defensive presence has very well been missed during his absence, Thybulle shouldn't see those minutes take much of a hit.
While he isn't a finished product just yet, the Sixers' first-rounder is clearly an asset to their team -- especially on the defensive side of the ball, which the Sixers tend to favor over the offense. We shouldn't be surprised to see Thybulle get eased back into his typical role, but it shouldn't be long before he becomes a crucial player once again.