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Zacharie Risacher selected first overall by Hawks in 2024 NBA Draft

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With the first overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, the Atlanta Hawks have selected Zaccharie Risacher of JL Bourg in the French LNB Elite League. French players are now first overall in two consecutive drafts after Victor Wembanyama was selected first overall last year by the San Antonio Spurs.

Another Frenchman, Alex Sarr, was drafted with the second overall pick by the Washington Wizards.

“I’m really excited about what’s going to happen,” Risacher said. “I just want to do my best to help the team. I just feel like I can help a lot. I’m willing to do whatever it takes to get on the field with these great players.”

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Standing at 6-foot-9 and 215 pounds, Risacher, 19, should be a foundational player for a Hawks team that hasn’t won a playoff series since 2021. Risacher is known as a solid defender who should help the Hawks’ players. Atlanta. defensive efficiency, which was 27th overall last year.

He’s also a solid ball handler, averaging 11.1 points and 4 rebounds throughout the EuroCup and his season with Bourg. The biggest question mark regarding Risacher is his shooting ability, which was inconsistent throughout his final season in France.

Basketball runs in Risacher’s family. His father, Stéphane Risacher, won a silver medal with France at the 2000 Olympics and was a long-time French professional basketball player.

The first overall pick was the Hawks’ only pick in the draft and only the second time the franchise had selected first overall. The first time was in 1975, when Atlanta selected David Thompson, who had never played for the franchise. The pick was also a surprise for the Hawks; they had just a 3% chance of getting the first overall pick in the draft lottery in May. Atlanta was initially projected to rank 11th overall.

Some wondered if Hawks general manager Landry Fields would make a trade, given that the Hawks have no other picks in the draft and few in future drafts. Especially with no consensus first-round pick, Fields likely could have picked up several good players for the price of the first pick.

But Fields chose to hold on to that pick for the rare opportunity to pick the No. 1 overall pick. He now has to plan for the rest of Atlanta’s team, as trade rumors have followed stars Trae Young and Dejounte Murray for several months.

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