2024 NBA Draft: Who is the Best Fit For The Atlanta Hawks With The No. 1 Pick?

Who will the Hawks take with the No. 1 Pick in the 2024 NBA Draft?

The Atlanta Hawks were not expecting to be picking with the No. 1 overall pick, but they shocked everyone when they won the NBA Draft Lottery with only a 3% chance. Now, a team with some talent is picking at the top and has a chance to add to their team. While this draft does not have a Victor Wembanyama type of talent in the draft, there are some perfect fits and complementary pieces to add to teams with established talent. The Hawks still have to make a decision on which guard to trade, but whether it is Trae Young or Dejounte Murray, they will have a talented point guard, an emergin forward in Jalen Johnson, and a talented big man in Onyeka Okongwu.

Adding a high end player to this group would help the Hawks possibly taking a step forward, but who is the best fit? With the draft nearly three weeks away, it does seem that three players seem to be pulling away from the rest in terms of being considered for the top spot. Alex Sarr, Zacharrie Risacher, and Donovan Clingan have been rumored to be near the top of the list for Atlanta and each one brings a good, but not complete skill set.

Let's take a look at Sarr.

Sarr has been mocked to the Hawks by several prominent outlets over the past 24 hours or so since the Draft Lottery and if Atlanta does take him, it makes a lot of sense. Atlanta has struggled on the defensive end of the floor for the past few seasons and lacks size, athleticism, and length, which Sarr brings in droves. He is 7'1, 220 LBS, and has a 7'4 wingspan. He uses his athleticism well and would be an impact guy on that end of the floor immediately. He is arguably the highest-ceiling prospect in the draft at a position of need for the Hawks. He is the presumed favorite to be selected No. 1 for a reason.

Alex Sarr defensive tape from his three game playoff run with the Perth Wildcats. Effects the game on that end in a multitude of ways:

- Intimidator that alters shots near the rim due to his physical attributes
- Strong weakside instincts using his 7’4” wingspan to swat shots
-… pic.twitter.com/AMQv0kohG8

— NBA Draft Dude 🤙 (@CoreyTulaba) May 13, 2024

He would be an immediate impact defender with a ton of ability. That is the kind of player that the Hawks need on that end of the floor and he would give them a boost to their most important area of need.

If they do take Sarr, I do think that would expedite Clint Capela's exit from the Hawks, as I think Sarr is going to play center in the league (but he could play power forward). Atlanta would have a logjam at the position and if you take Sarr at No. 1, he needs to be playing plenty of minutes right away, not coming off of the bench. Capela was already a candidate to be traded due to him being on an expiring contract and his age. I think the biggest question would be if Sarr and Onyeka Okongwu could play together on the court. Okongwu has primarily been a center while with the Hawks and rarely shares the floor with another big man, though head coach Quin Snyder did try lineups with Capela and Okongwu on the floor together last year, though it was in limited amounts.

Per Cleaning the Glass, Okongwu and Capela played only 279 possessions this season and had a point differential of +2.1 when they shared the court. The problem is this sample size is far too low and there is not enough evidence to say that Okongwu could play the four well.

If Sarr and Okongwu were to play together, there would be a massive question about floor spacing. Okongwu did show a willingness to take more three-pointers last season, but only attempted 69 of them and made 23 of them (33%). You can say that he would have taken more threes if he did not get injured, but his three-point shooting is still a big question mark. Combine that with Sarr's questions on the offensive end and ability to space the floor, that could be a sticky situation for Atlanta.

It is not just the fit of Okongwu and Sarr that would be the question though. Jalen Johnson showed huge leaps on offense this past season, including improvement in shooting the three. Johnson shot 28.8% on three's in 2022-2023, but improved that to 35.5% this season, going 71-200. Could there be another leap in his future? It would help in the event that Atlanta decided that they wanted to take Sarr and not trade away Okongwu.

The defensive fit would be very intriguing though with those three guys on the floor. Some of Atlanta's best lineups included Johnson and Okongwu, though it was a small sample size, but you have to wonder if there could be something there. If Johnson and Okongwu both showed steps toward spacing the floor, this could be a dangerous lineup for the future. The ability of Johnson, Okongwu, and Sarr to switch and guard multiple positions would be something that Atlanta has never had with Trae Young and would help hide his shortcomings on the defensive end.

His offensive game is the question mark. He is not a great shooter, does not finish with contact, plus he has not been a very good screener so far, though that is a fixable trait. Playing with either Young or Murray would help him fit in on offense, but he still needs to make a lot of improvement on that end of the floor in order for him to hit his ceiling.

I like the fit of Sarr on the Hawks it is safe to say, though he is not a perfect propsect.

What about Risacher?

It has been said by a number of draft analysts, but Risacher is a prospect that is has a limited ceiling, but a high floor and he also plays a position of need. Risacher is a 6'8, 204 LBS wing player who would also fill a big need for Atlanta. He has two-way versatility and has performed well since the lottery. He is a plug-and-play type of forward that would fit on the Hawks as either their starting 2 or 3. He is not an elite defender or offensive player, but he is solid enough at both and he is coming off of a really good offensive season. He does not need the ball in his hands to be an effective offensive player either, as his three-point numbers show. He will have to show this is sustainable, but he could be a real offensive threat next to Young and Johnson. Risacher could end up developing into a really good fit with Young and Johnson. He needs to show a wider array of skills on offense though and needs to drive and finish at the rim better. I think he would be the most seamless fit on the Hawks, even if I don't love his overall ceiling.

Risacher has been mocked to go No. 1 in the last two mock drafts from Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman and for the first time since the lottery, ESPN's Jonathan Givony has Risacher going to Atlanta in his latest mock draft that was released this week:

"The intel out of the Hawks continues to indicate that their front office is at an early stage in its decision-making process and there likely won't be clarity on which way the team is leaning with this pick until closer to draft night. It's unclear how much of an appetite ownership has for entering a rebuilding mode, and that might be difficult to avoid depending on what the team does in regard to the futures of stars Trae Young and Dejounte Murray,

Trading this pick for more immediate contributors or moving down to take multiple swings in this relatively flat lottery class are options. Take for example a scenario in which San Antonio would trade the No. 4 and No. 8 selections for the right to move up and draft Risacher.

Should Atlanta stand pat at No. 1, Risacher is looking like an increasingly attractive option. His season came to a close with Bourg's semifinal loss to No. 1 seed Monaco, capping off a playoff run in which he averaged 15.1 points and 7.4 rebounds per game, shooting 67% from the field and 38% on 3-pointers; all outstanding numbers for a 19-year-old at this level of competition. His next stop is the NBA Global Camp in Treviso, Italy, where he'll have a medical examination and undergo draft combine activity including interviews with interested teams.

Every team in the top five has significant interest in Risacher, and it is looking highly unlikely, barring a major surprise, that he'll drop out of the top two."

Here is Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman had to say yesterday about the possibility of Risacher going No.1 to Atlanta:

"Every Zaccharie Risacher playoff possession right now is likely monitored under the microscope of the Atlanta Hawks and other lottery teams. And he just delivered consecutive standout performances with a combined 39 points and five threes against AS Monaco.

He's still scoring on mostly the same shot diet and effective one-two punch of off-ball shotmaking and athleticism in transition. It hints at a very translatable, plug-and-play game, particularly for a lineup like Atlanta's that already has two creators in Trae Young and Dejounte Murray.

Alex Sarr may offer more theoretical upside with his defensive versatility and face-up flashes at 7'1". Donovan Clingan could come off as more of an impact presence with his rim protection.

While scouts continue to debate the height of Risacher's ceiling, there is also a perceived level of certainty tied to his positional size, shooting and defensive tools/quickness. In a draft where there isn't an obvious, sure-thing All-Star at the top, Risacher's floor and valued three-and-D archetype could give him an edge with a team that saw AJ Griffin struggle with injuries and Saddiq Bey go down late to an ACL tear."

I think Risacher will be a solid NBA player, but I prefer Sarr's ceiling and his defensive fit.

Clingan might be the most defensive-ready prospect in this draft in terms of paint presence and shot-blocking ability, but his offensive game is a huge question mark.

His 7-7 wingspan and shot blocking presence in the paint would immediately boost the Hawks defense, but how would he guard the perimeter? Is he quick enought to guard wing players and ball handlers in space? That is something that he still has to answer for any team. Clingan has drawn comparisons to four-time defensive player of the year Rudy Gobert and they have some similarities. What kind of offensive threat would Donovan Clingan be? He has been shown trying to work on developing his three-point shot, but he did not do that much at UConn. He can still develop his shot, but he will have to do it in a place that isn't an empty gym. He is also a poor free throw shooter and that would be a concern if teams try to force him to go to the line in games.

Clingan seems to be the darkhorse pick at No. 1, but there has been enough chatter about him to not discount him completely.

Sarr and Zaccharie Risacher have been the most talked about for the top pick in recent weeks but according to ESPN's Jonathan Givony, UConn center Donovan Clingan is still in play:

"Clingan has momentum going into June, as he made a strong impression in the drills portion of the combine, private interviews and his pro day, where he dropped intriguing glimpses of perimeter shooting that many scouts feel will be part of his game in the not-too-distant future. His measurements -- 7-3 in shoes, 282 pounds with a 7-7 wingspan and outrageous 9-7 standing reach are elite (as we already knew).

The draft lottery did not do him too many favors, though, slating teams with entrenched starters at the center position at Nos. 3, 4 and 5, which might drop him a little further than his big-board ranking indicates. It would not be surprising to see teams such as the Portland Trail Blazers or the Memphis Grizzlies try to move up on draft night to snag their starting center of the future. There is some chatter, however, that Clingan has fans among the Hawks' constituency at No. 1, meaning there's a lot left to be played out between now and June 26"

n an episode of his podcast, ESPN insider Adrian Wojnarowski was discussing prospects at the top of the draft with Givony and Wojnarowski suggested that Clingan is firmly in play to go in the top three, which obviously means he is in play for the No. 1 pick to Atlanta:

"I think with Clingan, there are elements to his game that you did not see at UConn that have been there and he has been someone that going back to his high school days, spent a lot of time, behind the three-point line and developing that game. You go watch him workout and you watch him practice and him moving all the way around the arc and back again and shooting the ball. He has not been a great free throw shooter, but there is no reason to believe that he is not going to be a better free throw shooter, there is nothing wrong with his stroke and it feels like it is a place that he is going to improve. His dominance for UConn, what he did, the improvement, the lateral quickness, his ability to recover and cover so much ground, you saw the NCAA Tournament, I mean Illinois literally could not get anywhere near the basket with him on the floor, but you saw it all year.

As teams are meeting him and getting their....they know what the intel is on him, what kind of teammate he has been, the kind of leader he was, the kind of empathy that he has for teammates, that has been known, but you just talk to teams who started to get to spend time with him and anybody around him knew that that was only going to enhance his stock when they get to meet with him and I think he will only go to select teams and spend even more time in their organization, certainly that is only going to help his case at No. 1, No. 2 with Washington, or perhaps even No. 3 with the Rockets."

I like Clingan a lot, but if the Hawks think he is the best prospect in the draft, they should try to move back and pick up more assets and then take him.

My verdict would be that Sarr is the best long-term fit and upside, but might also have the most risk to go with him. RIsacher seems to be the safe pick, but offers a limited upside compared to the other two. The same could be said of Clingan, though he has a potentially elite skillset that Risacher does not offer.

All of these players are still in contention to be the top pick and all of them make a certain level of sense. The Hawks front office faces a crucial decision in who to select with the No. 1 overall pick and they need to make sure the pick the best fit for the team.