.jpg) Risacher in the 2023LNB All-Star Game | |||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 10 – Atlanta Hawks | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Small forward | ||||||||||||||||||||
| League | NBA | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Personal information | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Born | (2005-04-08)8 April 2005 (age 20) Málaga, Spain | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Nationality | French | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Listed weight | 200 lb (91 kg) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||||||||||||||
| NBA draft | 2024: 1st round,1st overall pick | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Drafted by | Atlanta Hawks | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Playing career | 2020–present | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||||||||||||||
| 2021–2024 | LDLC ASVEL | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2023–2024 | →JL Bourg | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 2024–present | Atlanta Hawks | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Career highlights | |||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||
Stats at NBA.com  | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |||||||||||||||||||||
Medals
| |||||||||||||||||||||
Zaccharie Risacher (/ˈzækəriˌriːzɑːˈʃeɪ/ZAK-ər-eeREE-zah-SHAY;French pronunciation:[zakaʁiʁizaʃe];[1] born 8 April 2005) is a French professionalbasketball player for theAtlanta Hawks of theNational Basketball Association (NBA). He was selected with thefirst overall pick by the Atlanta Hawks in the2024 NBA draft.
Risacher was born on 8 April 2005, inMálaga, Spain, where his father,Stéphane Risacher, played professional basketball forBaloncesto Málaga from 2002 to 2006.[2] His family moved back toLyon, France, where he started playing club basketball at Élan Chalon at the age of three and a half, at youth club Tassin in the suburbs of the city.[3][4]
Risacher entered the youth program ofASVEL Basket in August 2020. He primarily played for the club's youth team in LNB Espoirs, the French under-21 league.[5]
Risacher made his debut with ASVEL's senior team in 2021, in aLNB Élite match againstMetropolitans 92.[6] He also made hisEuroLeague debut later in the season, on 18 January 2022, in a 75–100 loss toMonaco.[7] He averaged 12.5 points and 4.4 rebounds per game in the LNB Espoirs competition.[8]
On 16 June 2023, Risacher signed his first professional contract with ASVEL, before being immediately loaned out to fellow first-tier clubJL Bourg for the 2023–24 season.[9] On 29 November 2023, he was named to Team France for theLNB All-Star Game.[10]
Internationally, Risacher featured for JL Bourg in the2023–24 EuroCup, where the team eventually reached theFinals,[11][12] before losing to fellow French sideParis Basketball.[12] In April, Risacher was awarded theEuroCup Rising Star prize; at the age of 18 years and 362 days, he became the second-youngest player to win the award, being just a month older thanDžanan Musa, who had won the award in2018.[13]
On 12 May 2024, Risacher was named theBest Young Player of the2023–24 LNB Élite season, having averaged 10.1 points and 3.8 rebounds in 22 minutes per game.[12][14]
On 22 April 2024, Risacher announced that he had declared for the2024 NBA draft;[11] his entry was confirmed by theNBA on 2 May.[15]
On 26 June 2024, Risacher was selected by theAtlanta Hawks with thefirst overall pick in the 2024 NBA draft.[12][16][17] In the process, he became the second consecutive French player to be drafted with the number one pick, afterSan Antonio Spurs had pickedVictor Wembanyama in theprevious year's draft;[12][16][18] furthermore, he became the fifth international player to be taken with the first selection, after Wembanyama himself,Andrea Bargnani (in2006),Andrew Bogut (in2005) andYao Ming (in2002).[16] Risacher was selected alongside fellow FrenchmenAlex Sarr (drafted by theWashington Wizards with the second pick) andTidjane Salaün (drafted by theCharlotte Hornets with the sixth pick), making France the first foreign nation to have at least three native players picked in the top 10 spots of any NBA draft.[12][18]
On 6 July 2024, Risacher signed with the Hawks[19] and six days later, he made hisNBA Summer League debut against the Washington Wizards, recording 18 points, five rebounds and two assists in a 94–88 loss.[20] Risacher made his NBA regular-season debut on 23 October, recording seven points and one rebound in 19 minutes played in a 120–116 win over theBrooklyn Nets.[21] On 6 November, Risacher put up a career-high 33 points in a 121–115 win over theNew York Knicks.[22] On 30 March, 2025, Risacher scored a then career-high 36 points in a 145–124 win over theMilwaukee Bucks. He became the fourth 1st overall pick to record 35+ points, 5+ threes in a game as a rookie afterAllen Iverson,LeBron James andAnthony Edwards.[23] On 10 April, Risacher put up a career-high 38 points in a 133–109 win over the Brooklyn Nets.[24]
Risacher played for theFrance under-17 basketball team at the2022 FIBA Under-17 Basketball World Cup.[25] He struggled with consistency during the tournament which culminated by a zero-point, five-turnover performance in the final against Spain.[26] He averaged 10.4 points and 4.4 rebounds per game as France won the bronze medal.[27]
Risacher debuted with theFrance senior team on 23 February 2024 againstCroatia, but was forced to leave the game after four minutes due to a concussion.[28] He later re-joined France for theirEuroBasket 2025 qualifying games.[26] He later made the final selection forEuroBasket 2025,[29] and averaged 9.7 points, 4.2 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game.[30]
Playing atsmall forward, Risacher is regarded as an efficient catch-and-shoot player as well as a good shooter coming off screens or from mid-range.[26] His versatility has been praised for his ability to defend both guards and forwards on the perimeter.[26]
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024–25 | Atlanta | 75 | 73 | 24.6 | .458 | .355 | .711 | 3.6 | 1.2 | .7 | .5 | 12.6 |
| Career | 75 | 73 | 24.6 | .458 | .355 | .711 | 3.6 | 1.2 | .7 | .5 | 12.6 | |
Risacher is ofMartiniquais descent through his father,Stéphane Risacher.[31] Stéphane Risacher also played basketball professionally; he won asilver medal at the2000 Summer Olympics with theFrance national team.[16][32] Risacher's younger sister, Aïnhoa Risacher, is also a professional basketball player, currently playing for theLDLC ASVEL Féminin of theLigue Féminine de Basketball.[33]
Media related toZaccharie Risacher at Wikimedia Commons
