The Portland Trail Blazers, who currently own the No. 12 seed in the West, are getting some reinforcements with a month left in the regular season. According to NBA insider Chris Haynes, Matisse Thybulle will make his season debut on Wednesday night against the New York Knicks after recovering from a knee and ankle injury. The 28-year-old has not appeared in a game in nearly a full calendar year.
Portland Trail Blazers wing Matisse Thybulle — who dealt with a knee and ankle injury — will suit up for the first time this season tonight against the New York Knicks, league sources tell me. pic.twitter.com/vBkpAn7G4a
— Chris Haynes (@ChrisBHaynes) March 12, 2025
Trail Blazers Contributor’s Return Date From Injury Confirmed
What Matisse Thybulle Will Bring In His Return From Injury
Thybulle is one of the best defenders in the NBA and will boost the Trail Blazers in this area. Currently, Portland ranks 21st in DRTG in the entire NBA. While Thybulle’s return is not a fix on its own, it should help.
With only a month remaining, it will be interesting to see how often Thybulle suits up. Given how long he has been out for, it could make sense for the team to play it as safe as possible. However, they are still five games out of a Play-In spot. While unlikely, there is a world where the Trail Blazers make the postseason this year. This will be worth monitoring the rest of the way.
If nothing else, Thybulle provides depth. Despite starting 19 games last season, the Arizona native will most likely come off the bench the rest of the season. However, behind forwards like Deni Avdija and Jerami Grant, Thybulle is a good backup option for the Trail Blazers.
The Trail Blazers Have Exceeded Expectations
Regardless of how the rest of the season goes, the Trail Blazers have done well, all things considered. Last season, Portland went 21-61 and finished last in the Western Conference. Currently, they have already secured 28 wins, surpassing last season’s count by seven games. They have also improved in just about every statistical area and are inching closer to playoff contention. While the postseason is likely out of the picture this year, the Trail Blazers are a team to keep an eye on in the near future.
Recently, NBA insider Marc Stein reported that Portland may have interest in keeping head coach Chauncey Billups around past this season.
“Portland holds a team option on Billups for next season, but it was widely assumed in coaching circles when the season began that Billups was destined to be a candidate for other jobs at season’s end. The tenor of that chatter has changed. More and more you hear whispers that the Blazers are presumed to have mounting interest retaining Billups beyond this season.”
Whether this comes to fruition or not is something to monitor. However, in either case, the Trail Blazers have done better than most expected them to this season. Getting Thybulle back in the mix should give them the tools for a potential push late in the season.
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