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Alex Sarr had been our projected No. 1 overall pick for the few months prior to the NBA combine. But he’d been a soft No. 1. Even today, there is still no consensus answer for who’s the top prospect. Sarr fits with a lot of lineups. His archetype—a 7-foot switchable defender with some ball-handling and shotmaking skill—remains highly coveted. And theoretically, no other prospect offers the same type of upside at both ends.
But talking with scouts and executives in Chicago, the level of confidence in Sarr’s No. 1 overall potential didn’t feel overly strong. Questions about his offensive impact for the first pick were brought up.
And then there is Zaccharie Risacher, who’s currently playing in the LNB Pro A playoffs. General manager Landry Fields, assistant GM Kyle Korver and coach Quin Snyder made it to France for JL Bourg’s first game against Nanterre, with Risacher scoring 14 points in 23 minutes.
The 19-year-old followed up by exploding for a season-high 28 points in 29 minutes. Despite the loss, he was able to showcase his signature shotmaking, improving perimeter self-creation and athleticism around the basket.
Scouts ultimately seem to have a comfort level with Risacher’s game, which feels highly translatable based on his positional wing size (6’8″), 38.8 percent three-point shooting, the eye test on his mechanics, the fluidity of his movement and leaping, his foot speed to defend the point of attack and his tools to guard multiple positions and contest jump shots.
And in a draft that’s lacking surefire stars, the Hawks could be more inclined to play it safer with a high-floor, three-and-D prospect who’s still extremely young and has room to grow as a shot-creator.
Risacher may look even more appealing to Atlanta after AJ Griffin played just 20 games and Saddiq Bey tore his ACL. For now before workouts, the French wing has been moved to the No. 1 spot in our updated mock draft board.
