Doc Rivers Addresses Matisse Thybulle’s Inconsistent Minutes

Why isn't Matisse Thybulle playing much for the 76ers lately? Doc Rivers recently explained.

When Matisse Thybulle fired up his debut season with the Philadelphia 76ers in 2019, the former first-round pick found himself in and out of the team’s rotation throughout his rookie year. While Thybulle’s defensive dominance made it hard to stash him on the bench for a red-shirt year, his offensive value made it difficult to play him under specific circumstances.

Being in and out of the rotation throughout his first year in the NBA, Thybulle has learned a lot about dealing with inconsistent playing time but still staying ready when it’s time to take the floor. While there were growing pains early on, Thybulle is better prepared for the inconsistencies he’s faced throughout the 2022-2023 NBA season.

At the start of year four, Thybulle was clearly out of Doc Rivers’ rotation. Totaling roughly five minutes on the court through the first five games of the season, the defensive standout was playing well under his minutes average from the previous three years.

Once injuries occurred, and the rotation expanded, Thybulle started earning more playing time. However, the 18 minutes per game over a nine-game stretch from October to November wasn’t a preview of what was to come for the remainder of the year.

After Thybulle returned from an ankle injury, he clocked 25 minutes on the floor in his first two games back. From then on, his playing time has been inconsistent. In the last 11 games, Thybulle’s seen the court for 11 minutes per game. Over the last two matchups, he failed to pick up more than five minutes of playing time.

Fortunately for the Sixers, Thybulle is handling the inconsistent minutes well.

“I just show up every day and be ready for whatever is to come,” Thybulle said earlier this week. “I never really know what to expect. It’s just being ready — you never want that to be why you don’t perform well. So, not allowing that to be an excuse. It’s just a new challenge as with anything. ... Not something I’m not familiar with.”

A few hours after Thybulle addressed his lack of playing time as of late, Sixers head coach Doc Rivers explained the reason behind his recent decision.

“We have a lot of guys,” Rivers explained. “I have a feeling you could probably ask that after every game about one of our guys. We built the team that way, and each game will be different for some of the guys. There are guys who are clearly in the rotation daily, and then there are guys who will be game-by-game.”

With Thybulle still having much more to offer on the defensive end rather than the offensive end, he sits in a situational player category for the Sixers. It seems Thybulle will see his minutes fluctuate throughout the year, which means his lack of playing time is currently temporary.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.