Spurs Prospect Preview: Zaccharie Risacher

We might have to readjust our expectations for the 2024 NBA Draft class. It’s been mentioned many instances, however this draft seemingly has fewer superstar-upside gamers than in earlier years. A prospect or two will rise above the remainder and grow to be main names within the league, they all the time do. The remainder of them may be high-end function gamers who’ve an extended profession because the third or fifth man on a playoff crew. It turns into a way more thrilling draft when you drop the celebrity expectations and think about this as a gaggle of gamers who can affect profitable with out being the go-to man.

Not many gamers match that description higher than the 6-foot-9 wing from France, Zaccharie Risacher. At 19 years previous, Risacher burst onto NBA radars with JL Bourg. Risacher was capturing the ball over 50% from three to begin the season, whereas additionally being one in all Bourg’s greatest defenders. Each NBA crew seems to be for gamers who can area the ground and defend a number of positions, particularly ones with Risacher’s dimension.

Risacher is coming off his greatest sport of the season in a 90-84 loss to Nanterre on Saturday. He completed with 28 factors and 6 rebounds whereas capturing 5/9 from deep. Most significantly, he flashed an aggressiveness that’s not often seen in his sport. Performances like these will maintain Risacher on the high of draft boards.

The San Antonio Spurs don’t want a go-to man. They’ve their franchise cornerstone in Victor Wembanyama. They want complementary items round Wemby to construct a roster that may compete for a championship. It’s what makes them among the finest matches for Risacher, and why they might add one other Frenchman to the crew on Draft Evening.

Zaccharie Risacher, 6-foot-9 wing, JL Bourg

2023-2024 LNB Professional A stats: 10.1 factors, 0.9 assists, 3.8 rebounds, 43.9% FG, 35.2% 3PT, 74% FT, 58% True Capturing

Participant comparability: Dorian Finney-Smith

Strengths

Risacher’s capturing is what makes him a top-ten-level prospect. In his 17 video games of EuroCup competitors, he shot 56.1% from three on 3.4 makes an attempt per sport. He was scorching the nets earlier than the calendar turned to 2024. Then Risacher went on a little bit of a capturing droop. He shot 35.2% from deep within the LNB Professional A this season. Earlier than he acquired sizzling this season, there have been reliable issues about his capturing popping out of a combined Nike Hoops Summit efficiency in 2023. So the query stays, was Risacher’s capturing merely a sizzling streak, or has he turned a nook with the soar shot?

I lean towards the latter. Risacher has a easy jumper with a excessive launch level. He has good stability and rhythm in his mechanics. His base could be a bit inconsistent, however that may be rectified with extra game-speed reps with an NBA crew. He’s stable on catch-and-shoot makes an attempt, hitting 40.3% of these seems to be this season.

There isn’t a lot selection to the jumpers that Risacher makes. He primarily was a spot-up menace for JL Bourg this season. In actual fact, Risacher solely took 13 photographs off screens this season, in accordance Synergy. He doesn’t take a whole lot of photographs off motion nor the bounce. He’ll flash some high-level photographs like an occasional step-back three or a no-dip jumper from the nook. These photographs are tantalizing glimpses into his future as a shooter.

His jumper mixed together with his 6-foot-9 body are what make him a touted prospect. Risacher has been in comparison with Michael Porter Jr. for a lot of the draft cycle. He doesn’t create offense off the bounce like MPJ can, however he matches that wing archetype. He’s acquired lengthy arms that assist him get to balls defensively. He can get from end-to-end shortly within the open courtroom and dunk the ball together with his stable vertical leaping capacity. He’s rebounder who tries to get to the boards each defensively and offensively.

On high of getting body, Risacher has a excessive really feel for the sport. He’s often within the appropriate place defensively, however as most younger gamers do, he can spend an excessive amount of time watching his man as a substitute of seeing the entire flooring. His mixture of basketball IQ and size ought to make him a menace off the ball. On the ball, he’s in a position to stick to dribblers due to his velocity and size. He strikes his ft nicely for a participant of his dimension and is ready to combat by way of screens with velocity.

Whereas Risacher is a bit restricted with the ball in his fingers (extra on that later) he makes some good reads as a passer. It’s nothing flashy, however he’s prepared to make the additional go. He’s good sufficient to chop to the open area when it’s there. It’s obvious that he processes the sport at a fairly excessive stage on each ends.

Weaknesses

The largest knock on Risacher is his incapacity to create his personal shot. He’s not a artistic scorer and has a tough time getting separation within the half-court. He’s proven little or no functionality of constructing photographs off the dribble or within the mid-range, capturing simply 32.5% on non-rim 2-point makes an attempt. He can assault a closeout and get to the basket however don’t anticipate him to place the ball on the deck and make a play for you in isolation or the decide and roll. He dribbles the ball a bit too excessive, so he can get ripped or disrupted when a participant pressures him on the perimeter. He averaged 1.5 turnovers this yr.

Risacher will not be a terrific finisher on the rim but, both. Certain a number of the dunks look good, however he struggles to constantly end on the rim. He shot simply 60% on the rim on 178 makes an attempt this season. He was additionally inconsistent on the free-throw line when he acquired there this season. He shot simply 71% from the stripe, which is far decrease than you’d anticipate from a sharpshooter. The dearth of contact on mid-range jumpers, free throws and photographs across the basket is what fuels a number of the disbelief in his soar shot general.

Add that collectively and you’ve got a prospect that doesn’t have the upside you’d like from a top-five choice. Gamers who don’t create like Risacher don’t often go within the high 5. Will groups go on Risacher for wings with greater upside like Matas Buzelis or Ron Holland? Or will a crew prefer to seize a participant that has a worthwhile talent set, even when he solely turns into a job participant on the subsequent stage? That is still the central query in Risacher’s NBA analysis.

Spurs match

San Antonio wants shooters and defenders round Wembanyama. You could possibly argue that they nonetheless want benefit creators who can generate seems to be for Wembanyama or put the ball within the basket when he’s not on the ground. But, if there may be any crew within the high ten that doesn’t want a “go-to” man, it’s the Spurs. May they nonetheless goal for a participant who has extra upside to grow to be an All-Star subsequent to Wemby?

The Spurs will like Risacher’s capacity to play and defend positions 2-4. His capturing is one thing they desperately want proper now. He would grow to be one of many higher defenders on the roster in yr one. Having Jeremy Sochan as a “stopper” on the crew’s greatest offensive participant, after which having Risacher taking part in good off-ball protection with Wembanyama defending the rim could be a enjoyable mixture to observe, particularly if the crew may add point-of-attack defender.

Offensively Risacher would slot in with the Spurs’ heavy ball-movement model of play. His basketball IQ would do him wonders taking part in subsequent to different good gamers like Wembanyama and Tre Jones. Risacher may fill a Dorian Finney-Smith kind of function – a play finisher who feeds off the eye his celebrity teammates obtain.

Risacher would be a part of Julian Champagnie and Sochan to immediately enhance the Spurs wing room. There may be a whole lot of overlap in Risacher and Champagnie’s video games. Each are massive wings who can defend and area the ground. These two gamers would probably battle for a beginning place subsequent season.

Risacher is the kind of participant that the Spurs must be stacking up on. Excessive-IQ gamers who can area the ground and defend are great matches subsequent to Wembanyama. But when the Spurs would reasonably prioritize high-ceiling gamers, they might elect to look elsewhere.

Earlier Prospects:

Rob Dillingham

Reed Sheppard

Nikola Matter