After a couple-week saga with Alex Sarr, the Hawks drafted his fellow countryman, Zaccharie Risacher, last night with the No. 1 overall pick.
The 19-year-old Frenchman projects as the most desirable archetype in today’s NBA — a 3-and-D wing. Risacher told the Atlanta media that he’s a versatile player, willing to take on any role while noting he can defend multiple positions, rebound, finish, and “obviously” shoot threes.
More Risacher:
“I know that I can do a lot of things. Defend multiple positions, grabbing some rebounds, finishing strong, being aggressive, shooting threes obviously.“
— Brad Rowland (@BTRowland) June 27, 2024
Zaccharie Risacher certainly has to refine facets of his game to live up to the lofty expectations of a No. 1 overall pick, but he should be able to carve out a role immediately next to Trae Young or Dejounte Murray in the backcourt.
He plays off-ball (ideal with a ball-dominant point guard in Young or Murray), can defend (also ideal for a duo with Young), and can shoot the three ball, which is necessary for Quin Snyder’s system.
The Hawks missed the playoffs for the first time in three years, and the expectation is that Landry Fields will retool the roster around one of their All-Star point guards to get back to the postseason. The hope is that Risacher will go a long way in accomplishing that in Atlanta.
But if we are speaking frankly, he’s underdeveloped physically and still needs to be more efficient shooting. Hawks fans can hope for the best, but expectations should be tempered. Not every No. 1 overall pick takes the league by storm immediately, and that is very much true in the case of 19-year-old Zaccharie Risacher.
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Photographer: Glenn Gervot/Icon Sportswire
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