Soaring Down South
Fansided

Atlanta Hawks Mock Draft Before March Madness

By Chris Guest

Cam Reddish (R) and Zion Williamson of the Duke Blue Devils Atlanta Hawks (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images)
Cam Reddish (R) and Zion Williamson of the Duke Blue Devils Atlanta Hawks (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
4 of 6
Next
Atlanta Hawks
Washington Huskies guard Matisse Thybulle Atlanta Hawks (Photo by Kevin Abele/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /

#35 – Matisse Thybulle

As has already been stated, the Atlanta Hawks must improve on defense going forward if they are to be a contender going forward in what looks as if it might be an extremely accelerated rebuild for the team.

With both Reddish and Hunter on the team as day-one starters (possibly, depending on what the team does with Kent Bazemore in the final year of his 2016 deal), the team should take a swing on a talented guard defender, which is exactly what Washington senior Matisse Thybulle is.

With the Pac-12 conference already wrapped up in favor of the Huskies, Thybulle is looking to make an impact in the NCAA Tournament with his immense defensive gifts.

Thybulle is currently #1 in the country in steal rate at 6.7 percent, according to KenPom, and his block rate of 8.1 percent is pretty amazing for a 6-foot-6 guard. Thybulle employs Washington’s zone defense to freelance on the defensive end, allowing him to roam around and use his elite hands to poke away balls from unsuspecting ballhandlers.

According to College Basketball Reference, Thybulle is also #1 in total steals in all of college basketball at an even 100 (which his career-high from last season of 101 is likely in jeopardy), and he is also #1 in steals per game throughout the NCAA with 3.4 takeaways per game. With 305 steals, Thybulle is 2nd all-time in Pac-12 history in steals.

Though Thybulle’s offense is far less of a calling card, he will likely only be tasked with being a spot-up shooter in the NBA, and though he is shooting only 32.2 percent from deep this season, he is a career 36.5 percent shooter from distance and shot over 40 percent in his sophomore year.

Thybulle is also shooting 85.7 percent from the free throw line on nearly 2 attempts per game, so his shooting form is solid.