Hawks Win Thrilling Preseason Opener 131-130 as No. 1 Overall Pick Zaccharie Risacher Shines in NBA Debut

Jackson Caudell | 2 Hours Ago

Oct 8, 2024; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; Atlanta Hawks forward Zaccharie Risacher (10) drives to the basket against Indiana Pacers center James Wiseman (13) during the first half at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images / Dale Zanine-Imagn Images

It might be only a preseason game (and the very first one at that), but it is hard to imagine tonight's game not being viewed as a huge success for the Atlanta Hawks.

Not many knew what to really expect of this Hawks team coming into the night. Atlanta is a different looking team than the past couple of years and how would all of those new players such as No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher, Dyson Daniels, Larry Nance, and others look for the Hawks?

The first glimpse we got tonight looked pretty damn good.

Trae Young looked like himself tonight, scoring 17 points and idishing out six assists, but the Hawks superstar point guard was not the highlight of the night. The main highlights of tonight would be the play of Risacher and Jalen Johnson. Many around the NBA are expecting yet another leap from Johnson this season and tonight was an excellent start. Johnson finished the game with 19 points, 10 rebounds, and three steals in 22 minutes. Johnson looked in sync with Young on offense and made his presence felt defensively. It is just one preseason game, but Johnson was excellent tonight.

Risacher has entered the season flying under the radar, which seems crazy for a No.1 pick, but it is true. Tonight, Risacher showed what he is capable of and had about as good of a debut as you could ask for. He finished with 18 points on 7-9 shooting, as well as three rebounds and two assists, not to mention a team-high +15 in the minutes he played tonight.

Afterward, Risacher talked about what it was like for him in his first game:

"I was super excited for the game. This whole process you know, training camp and everything, that was the start of something great I think, yeah I was super excited and I am glad that it went well."

Young also praised Risacher after the game and also said he hated how this was not a regular season game for him:

"Yeah, I hate that this was not the first game of the season where it counts for real because that was a hell of a performance and a hell of a start. I wanted him to feel like how he felt tonight like there is no pressure on him, he can go out there and be himself and he played like he did tonight. He shot the ball really well and has a great feel for the game and can make the right reads, obviously, he is going to make some turnovers and make some mistakes, but he is going to have a hell of a career."

Daniels was another bright spot. He scored 14 points on 5-8 shooting (1-3 from three) and also had three assists. Vit Krejci had seven points and six assists, including the highlight of the night with this fourth-quarter pass.

THE VIT YEET pic.twitter.com/guRb1N9Dhp

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) October 9, 2024

For all of the players who played well, I have not even mentioned the player who hit the game winning shot. Second-year forward Seth Lundy only played the final 2:41 of the game, but he hit the clutch basket that mattered.

SETH LUNDY FOR THE WIN pic.twitter.com/pjYAL9pO6m

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) October 9, 2024

One of the questions the Hawks had coming into the season was about backup point guard and who would lead the offense when Trae Young was off the floor. Bufkin got the chance to do that tonight and looked very comfortable doing it. He ran the pick and roll effectively (especially with Larry Nance) and he finished with 9 points and four assists. This was a huge night for Bufkin, though he might get overshadowed by the others. He played well tonight and that is encouraging to see.

It might just be a preseason game, but it is hard to imagine that this night could have gone better for the Hawks.

Let's recap a chaotic night at State Farm Arena.

In the first preseason game of the year, the Atlanta Hawks started Trae Young, Dyson Daniels, Jalen Johnson, and Clint Capela. Bogdan Bogdanovic and Onyeka Okongwu were out tonight.

The Pacers started Tyrese Haliburton, Andrew Nembhard, Aaron Nesmith, Pascal Siakam, and James Wiseman.

While this ended up being a successful game for the Hawks, it did not start well and some of the same problems that plagued the Hawks stood out at the start of the game. Indiana opened the game on a 9-2 run and was shooting 4-5 from the field. The Pacers gave the Hawks a lot of trouble last season and the beginning of this game looked eerily similar.

The game started to turn when the Hawks made their first substitutions, bringing in Risacher and second-year guard Kobe Bufkin. Bufkin immediately hit a three and then Daniels hit a three to cut the lead to 22-11 and then Risacher got his first bucket of the game at the 4:51 mark.

Zacch Euro steps & finger rolls his way to his first bucket as a Hawk 🤌 pic.twitter.com/XLjslsDDpf

— Atlanta Hawks (@ATLHawks) October 9, 2024

The Hawks clawed their way back and lead 35-31 at the end of the first.

The second quarter began with Young, Krejci, Garrison Matthews, Larry Nance, and Johnson on the floor together.

Indiana began the quarter on an 8-0 and then got the lead to 44-37 with 7:48 left in the first half. The offense for the Pacers continued to roll in the second quarter and they led by a score of 58-47, but the Hawks closed the half strong. They cut the Pacers lead to 63-58 at the half and went into halftime with momentum.

In the first half, Atlanta shot 45% from the floor and 32% from three. Indiana shot 56% from the floor and 22% from three. Siakam led the way for the Pacers, scoring 15 in the first half.

Johnson had a great first half, soring 15 points on 6-10 shooting and grabbing eight rebounds. Risacher had eight points, and Daniels had 11 points on 5-6 shooting.

How the coaches handled the second half was a question coming into the night and Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle decided to pull his starters. Quin Snyder did not though and most of his guys played in the third quarter. For most of the final quarter though, he rolled with Bufkin, Krejci, Matthews, Roddy, and Mouhamed Gueye, until the final three minutes. He then inserted Keaton Wallace, Seth Lundy, and Dominick Barlow for their first minutes tonight. It was a chaotic final three minutes, but it ended with a Lundy three off of a missed free throw attempt and the Hawks won what was a crazy preseason game.

It was a great night for the Hawks, as their young guys played well and the vets showcased their abilities as well. They will be on the court next Wednesday for their next preseason game vs the Miami Heat.