Hawks rookie Zaccharie Risacher’s play as 19-year-old hints at good things to come

Not every draft has that kind of prospect available. Risacher probably won’t become a franchise player (few do). He may not even become a perennial All-Star. But his rookie season has been a success when placed in the proper context.

Risacher already is a good defender. His ballhandling and decision-making are sound. Risacher can get points on his own with good moves around the basket and a smooth finishing touch. Risacher shot the ball poorly through December, but now leads Hawks starters in accuracy on 3-point shots (34%).

The NBA named Risacher its Eastern Conference rookie of the month for February. It’s a PR award, but if it were put to a vote by impartial observers, Risacher should win it. After a rough start to his NBA career, Risacher’s production is catching up with his talent.

“I definitely feel the improvement,” Risacher said before scoring a team-high 27 points on just 13 shots during a victory at Memphis on Monday. “I feel like I’m getting more comfortable. Just trying to win games and trying to help my team in multiple ways. I just try to do my best.”

Snyder often says that Risacher’s development won’t be “linear.” Lately, the arrow is pointing up. Risacher is a teenager still (his birthday is April 8). If he continues to improve, then he’ll become a good starter who can help a winning team. If that happens, then he’ll be worthy of the No. 1 pick in his draft.

It’s not often that NBA rookies immediately show they will be good players in the league. Hawks guard Trae Young was one of them. He was in the league for less than a month before I recognized that he was going to be a star. I was high on Young’s potential before the draft because he already had shown an NBA-level ability to make plays as a passer at Oklahoma.

Shooting was supposed to be Risacher’s NBA-ready skill. That’s why it was a surprise when Risacher made only 29% of his 3-point attempts through December despite benefiting from the open looks that Young creates. But I withheld judgment on Risacher, reminding myself that’s he’s just 19, and that was easier to do because his defense stood out.

Risacher knows how to navigate screens. He knows how cut off ballhandlers as the help defender and recover to get back to his man. Risacher’s feel for playing defense in the NBA is rare for a rookie.

The challenge is that while Risacher usually is in the right position to defend, opponents often move him out of the way. He’s 6-foot-9, but doesn’t weigh much more than 200 pounds. However, Risacher has a stout lower body. His overall strength should improve with age and the nutrition and workout plan created for him by the Hawks.

“We all can go back and see photographs of ourselves in high school, and when you’re a senior in college, you look really different,” Snyder said. “That’s kind of what we’re dealing with.”

Risacher is accustomed to being among the youngest players in a league of older professionals. He was 16 when he made his debut in France’s top professional league. But Risacher said he’s still adjusting to the physical play of the world’s best league.

“Sometimes it’s a challenge to be ready and get the ‘hit,” Risacher said, referring to ball handlers who create space by initiating contact.

That aspect of Risacher’s game will get better as he gets bigger and stronger. Physical development also will help him with rebounding and scoring through contact at the basket. In the meantime, Risacher already has become a sharpshooter for the Hawks.

He made just 29% of 142 3-point attempts in 33 games through December. In 22 games since then, Risacher has made 42% of 93 attempts. Snyder said Risacher’s improved shooting in practice started showing up in games.

“I just kept believing (in myself) and kept (up) the hard work and that’s just what it’s about, you know?” Risacher said.

Risacher is on the short list of 18- and 19-year-olds to play in the NBA. Per the Basketball Reference database, which counts players’ age as of Feb. 1 during the season, only 197 teenagers have played in the league. (Players had to be four years removed from high school to be draft eligible from 1946 until a 1971 Supreme Court ruling).

Not many of those players produced like star players as rookies. Some of them are in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame or are shoo-ins for election once they are eligible: Kevin Garnett, Chris Bosh, LeBron James, Anthony Davis and Kyrie Irving. Former teenage stars Jayson Tatum and Luka Dončić are on that trajectory.

Risacher’s rookie season doesn’t measure up to those players, but that’s an extremely high bar to clear. Also, his circumstances are different from most of them.

Nearly all the NBA’s teen stars played heavy minutes for teams that made them the focal points of the offense. Risacher is averaging 24.3 minutes per game and ranks sixth among Hawks players in field-goal attempts per minute. Risacher’s rookie season compares favorably with two NBA teenagers who went on to become stars, Anthony Edwards and Jermaine O’Neal, when considering roles, efficiency and per-minute production.

Risacher has started to make the most of his offensive opportunities while continuing to play the kind of defense that is especially valuable for wing players.

“I’ve still got a lot of work to do, but I feel like I’m on the right way to be a good player,” Risacher said.

I feel the same way. Risacher is not an instant star, but that shouldn’t have been the expectation. His solid rookie season as a 19-year-old suggests he could be a star one day.