Sixers

The Jalen McDaniels Trade Ended Up Being a Waste (update)

By Kevin Kinkead

Published: Jul 3rd, 2023 · 8:55 AM EDT

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NBA news from the weekend:

Free agent Jalen McDaniels has agreed to a two-year, $9.3 million deal with the Toronto Raptors, sources tell @TheAthletic @Stadium.

— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) July 1, 2023

To recap, the Sixers traded former first round pick Matisse Thybulle and a second round draft pick to acquire McDaniels and avoid the tax (edit – I forgot they picked up two FUTURE seconds as well, one in 2024 and one in 2029 that will convey when we are likely in the old folks home) He played 24 games, appearing 21 times off the bench for an average of 17.5 MPG, 6.7 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 0.8 assists. McDaniels was then called on eight times in the playoffs, appearing in every Brooklyn game but limited to 36 minutes over four games in the Boston series, scoring just six points in the process.

Thybulle, meantime, rediscovered his three point shot, shooting a career-high 38.8% on a career-high 3.9 attempts per game. He played 27.7 minutes per game on a stinky Blazers team that finished 13th in the West and looks to be beginning a rebuild should Damian Lillard indeed be on his way out.

It’s hard to judge the Thybulle thing in a vacuum because the change of scenery, distance from Doc Rivers, and lack of expectations probably opened things up for Matisse out there. He wasn’t playing great basketball before the Sixers shipped him out, but now it’s much less about Thybulle and more about the fact that the Sixers shipped a 25-year-old former first rounder and a second round draft pick for a rental that they barely even used and two future 2nd round picks that will mean very little.

Certainly the James Harden situation remaining unresolved allowed other teams to get in and make offers to McDaniels (and Georges Niang). Regardless, McDaniels walked and the Sixers got nothing. You get nothing. You lose. Good day sir.