Despite the Loss, Zaccharie Risacher Showed He Isn't A One-Off Story

The young wing had another strong performance against the 76ers in the Hawks' second preseason game.

Oct 14, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Hawks forward Larry Nance Jr. (22) and forward Zaccharie Risacher (10) go up for a rebound over Philadelphia 76ers forward Caleb Martin (16) in the first quarter at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images / Brett Davis-Imagn Images

After a strong performance against the Indiana Pacers in the Hawks preseason opener, there had to be some concern that Hawks wing Zaccharie Risacher would not be able to parlay that over into a strong performance against the Philadelphia 76ers. On paper, Philly has a better defense than Indiana and they would be better prepared to gameplan for him.

Instead, Risacher followed it up with another solid performance that showed he is ready for NBA action. Against Indiana, he dropped 18 points, dished out two assists and grabbed three rebounds while going 3-4 from deep. Things were a little more difficult from a shotmaking perspective against Philly. He scored 14 points while going 5-11 from the field and only hitting 1 of his five attempts from deep. Just by looking at his shot numbers, it would be easy to say that Risacher struggled in this game.

However, that ignores the growth he showed and the larger impact he was making throughout the game. Of the eight rebounds Risacher grabbed against Philly, seven of them were on defense. He consistently got into the paint and fought for rebounds despite still adjusting to NBA strength.

Furthermore, there are going to be nights where his three-point shot is not falling. Therefore, it's important that he is still able to put pressure on the rim. He did that on his first bucket of the game. Risacher got the pass from Larry Nance Jr at the three-point line, drove past Sixers forward Guerschon Yabusele, and finished over Kelly Oubre Jr at the baseline. Oubre drew the primary defensive assignment on Risacher, but I would say Risacher got the better of him more often than not.

He also had a nice move to score on Andre Drummond where he got the ball from Dyson Daniels (who also had a great game) and put a layup in by using an up and under move. His usage of shot fakes also showed up on another one of his baskets down low. Overall, Risacher showed he has the patience and craftiness to get NBA defenders to bite on his shot before getting the bucket.

Of course, Risacher still has a quick release and does not hesitate when he is open. His only three of the night was a corner look with Oubre closing in on him. He is going to have off shooting nights, but it was nice to see that the results did not prevent him from being confident and taking the attempts when they are there.

The passing did not pop as much against Philly, but he still showed an ability to keep the ball moving and find others for simple passes. The most encouraging development from this game in comparison to the Indiana game was the activity he showed on the boards. He consistently put himself in position to get boards and end possessions for Philly. Now, it should be noted that the 76ers are one of the weaker rebounding teams in the NBA. This is also pre-season, so it's not like they were giving their all on the boards. However, these are good signs for Risacher developing the strength to handle NBA physicality. He likely won't be close to physically developed for another four or five years, but it is good to see that he still has a reasonable level of baseline strength.

Against Miami, he will have perhaps his toughest challenge of the preseason thus far. The Heat are consistently one of the tougher defenses to work against and I would expect Erik Spoelstra to devote some attention towards slowing down Risacher. How he responds to that challenge will be another legitimate measuring point for what fans can expect from Risacher in 2024-25.