Welcome to Atlanta Zacc Risacher

[Jamaaliver]

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[jayu70]

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[jayu70]

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[atlantabbq99]

People criticize Zac for not being a playmaker, but when you have Trae, Jalen and Kobe on your team, its actually good that he doesn't need the ball in his hands to score 20. Hopefully he can be a Rip, Tayshaun, Reggie type of scorer.

[HMFFL]

People criticize Zac for not being a playmaker, but when you have Trae, Jalen and Kobe on your team, its actually good that he doesn't need the ball in his hands to score 20. Hopefully he can be a Rip, Tayshaun, Reggie type of scorer.

He is going to end up being the #1 talent on the team and the leader. Trae is far from being a leader and it has shown for a couple of seasons.

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[tbhawksfan1]

People criticize Zac for not being a playmaker, but when you have Trae, Jalen and Kobe on your team, its actually good that he doesn't need the ball in his hands to score 20. Hopefully he can be a Rip, Tayshaun, Reggie type of scorer.

He is going to end up being the #1 talent on the team and the leader. Trae is far from being a leader and it has shown for a couple of seasons.

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High expectations for our young Frenchman. Nice

[tbhawksfan1]

I was Sarr #1 and Risacher #2 all the way through the pre-draft; until two days before and Ris moved at least even with Sarr. The non work out and the fact that Ris is actually the wing that Sarr wants to be made me happy that we took Ris #1

[DirtybirdGA]

Hope you're right H&M..the newness has to wear off for Zacc after a while, most young guys feel happy to just be in the mix.

[Jamaaliver]

2024 NBA Draft Guide

5. Zaccharie Risacher

W/F | JL Bourg | Birthdate: April 8, 2005 (Age: 19) | 6-9 | 205 LBS

STRENGTHS

Spoiler:

Risacher has great measurements for the “big wing” archetype NBA teams love. While he doesn’t have much length with just a 6-9 1/2 wingspan, he is a fluid athlete who is very coordinated for his size. Has an 8-11 standing reach. He has great feel for the game, which allowed him to make an early impact as a teenager in high-level European competitions.

A big portion of Risacher’s value comes from the threat of the jumper. Risacher has knocked down shots this season at an effective clip, hitting 38.7 from 3. He’s converted 40.7 percent of his catch-and-shoot 3s and 34.8 percent of his 3s off the dribble, many of which were relocation shots. His mechanics improved dramatically the summer before his first full professional season in 2023-24. His ball trajectory looks much smoother. His shots generally came from standstill spot-up situations, but he flashed shooting off movement coming off pindown screens.

Risacher moves well without the ball and plays within the flow of his team’s offensive system. He is good in triple-threat situations when he catches after moving offball. He recognizes his defender’s closeout rhythm early and adjusts his feet ahead of time depending on whether he’s shooting or driving. He cuts well off the ball
and gets himself into optimal attacking positions. He’s effective along the baseline because of his ability to finish above the rim off two feet. He is good at cutting to
the rim from the wing as his teammates drive from the opposite side of the court. In transition, he fills lanes as he should, either as a spacer for others or to attack
the basket.

His shooting and off-ball movement have opened up his game as a driver. He’s fluid with the ball considering his age and size. He can lead the break for his team or
catch outlet passes and get downhill. He has become comfortable attacking closeouts and gaps and can finish above the rim with authority. There’s rarely any hesitation with his decision-making. If he has a straight line or an opportunity to get his man off-balance, he will immediately attack. While he doesn’t create many pull-ups, he showed the potential to generate stepback jumpers, especially going to his left.

Risacher is a fantastic team defender for a teenager playing high-leverage professional minutes. He always seems to be in on the action and in the right place, making rotations that are not only timely, but disruptive. He seems to see what opponents are running early, and his closeouts are on-balance. He is fantastic playing as the low man covering the basket and the opposite corner in ball screen situations. He’s always ready to tag rollers, but he uses his length to effectively play cat-and mouse games to bait opposing guards into bad decisions.

He's not a crazy leaper, but he’s regularly available to contest from the opposite side. Risacher also thrived in different defensive roles. Bourg largely used him against wings, and he did a good job containing drives and forcing contested jumpers or
kickouts. But it also occasionally used Risacher at the point of attack against smaller, quicker guards, and while he got beat a decent amount, he usually recovered by using his length to make an impact. He gets around screens, understanding how to get skinny to sneak over the top while using his length well to contest from behind. He may not be an All-Defense-level player in the future, but he has a chance to be a plus defender overall if he keeps adding strength.

WEAKNESSES

Spoiler:

Though he moves fluidly for someone his size, Risacher is not explosive. He doesn’t play with much force and lacks much vertical pop in traffic. He’s grown better at absorbing contact around the rim but is rarely the player initiating said contact at this point in his career. He’s still growing into his frame and body, but it’s unclear if he will ever be a particularly physical or quick player.

Risacher is not an impressive shot creator for himself in ball screen or isolation situations and generally needs his teammates to have already bent the defense in
some way. He struggles to beat his defender off the dribble and can’t turn the corner on anyone in one-on-one situations. His handle is creative but loose, as if he has good ideas for attacking defenders that he cannot execute.

He tends to make slow-developing looping moves as opposed to sudden ones and seems to predetermine
his attack rather than reading his defender. Given that weakness, it’s unclear how his passing will translate to the NBA. He has excellent vision and easily sees cross-corner and cross-wing kickout passes on drives. In transition, he makes quick, sharp reads. But because he struggles to bend defenses himself, he doesn’t force enough help to take full advantage of his playmaking. Instead, he can get locked up in the midrange area on his drives where his only choice is a low-impact escape pass. His roughly 1-to-1.5 assist-to-turnover ratio is worrisome for a wing.

[size=118]Risacher is not a great finisher at the rim.[/s] Players his size should be able to rise and finish, but he doesn’t consistently right now. If he can’t load up off two feet, he tends to finish below the rim. When opponents bump him around the basket, he loses some of the touch that makes him special. Risacher might fare better in the more open NBA game compared to the European style that tends to be more physical around the basket, but he made just 54.8 percent at the rim in half-court settings, per Synergy, and only got there about once per game. He also doesn’t have much of an in-between game, having made just 26.1 percent of his midrange 2-point pull-ups and just eight of his 21 floater attempts.

[size=118]Finally, Risacher is not a good rebounder for someone whose best position might be the four.[/s] He had some moments as an offensive rebounder, but he didn’t typically box his man out on the defensive glass. He ball-watches and stays too upright around the rim, which allows players to wedge him out of position. He averaged just four rebounds in 23 minutes per game, and his 15.1 defensive rebounding rate is more in line with that of a two-guard.

The Athletic

[NDaATL]

I would have taken Sarr, but on the other hand, the Finals have shown us that winning and getting to the finals is all about guards and guard play.... Tatum, Luka, Edwards, Joker

Sarr would have been a better pick, but centers don't take teams to the finals anymore.

Joker not a Center?
Giannis not a big?

[Jamaaliver]

I would have taken Sarr, but on the other hand, the Finals have shown us that winning and getting to the finals is all about guards and guard play.... Tatum, Luka, Edwards, Joker

Sarr would have been a better pick, but centers don't take teams to the finals anymore.

Joker not a Center?
Giannis not a big?

Yeah, it's a weird take, for sure.

Jokic is the one player on Earth no one in the NBA can defend --specifically because he's a skilled 7 foot, 280 pound monster.

And Boston had no one on their roster capable of slowing Jokic down had they met in the postseason.

It's no coincidence that the top 3 teams out West all feature elite 7 foot Centers...

[atlantabbq99]

Joker is just a 7foot PG, this is just common knowledge.

[Jamaaliver]

Joker is just a 7foot PG, this is just common knowledge.

And Jamal Murray is just a 6 foot Wide Receiver. Everyone knows that...

Spoiler:

[Jamaaliver]

Company man, reading the Corporate Press Release line by line off the prompter.

I respect it, Bob.

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[Jamaaliver]

Zacc's shot chart as a semi pro in France.

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[Jamaaliver]

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[Jamaaliver]

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[ChuckChilly]

Seems like Zacc has the kind of hair Trae thinks he has.

[HMFFL]

Showtime tomorrow Hawk fans!!!!!

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[Jamaaliver]

2024 NBA summer league: First impressions on the rookie class

Productive, assertive start for Risacher

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Some early nerves from Zaccharie Risacher gave way to a confident offensive performance that demonstrated his shotmaking versatility, feel for the game and all-around skill level that made him the draft's No. 1 pick.

He hit three of his nine 3-point attempts, including a pretty escape dribble pullup and a deep spot-up off a kickout pass. He was given more shot-creation freedom than previously seen in France, aggressively transitioning the ball, spraying passes unselfishly all over the floor, showing nice pace getting to the rim fluidly and finishing skillfully off the glass with his off hand out of pick-and-roll. He hunted pullup 3s all game with mixed results and still has a ways to go with his handle and ability to play through contact on both ends, clearly needing to add strength to his 195-pound frame.

It was not the most impressive performance of the weekend, but there are quite a few positives to take away overall, as he scored in a variety of ways, despite the lack of hierarchy and playmaking on the Hawks' roster after losing starting point guard Kobe Bufkin to injury just days prior.

ESPN