What Do the Atlanta Hawks Want To See From Zaccharie Risacher in Year Two?

They went out and acquired Kristaps Porzingis and Nickeil Alexander-Walker this offseason and have every reason to believe they could make a run in the Eastern Conference, where the Boston Celtics and Indiana Pacers are both missing their best players with Achilles injuries, and Giannis Antetokounmpo and the Milwaukee Bucks look poised for another first-round exit. If the Hawks are going to make a run, how does Risacher fit in?

How Can Zaccharie Risacher Help the Atlanta Hawks Make a Leap Next Season?

Adding good players won't be enough for the Hawks. The Orlando Magic made a big trade for Desmond Bane. The New York Knicks hired a new head coach and improved their depth. If the Sixers have a very un-Sixers season, they could also be contenders. There's still the Cavaliers as well.

The Hawks will need an elite season from Young, Porzingis, and Jalen Johnson to play more often than not, and Risacher to build on his rookie season. As a rookie, Risacher averaged 12.6 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 1.2 assists on 46/36/71 shooting splits. He shot 4.6 three-pointers per game.

Risacher's 36 percent from deep isn't bad, but they would certainly like him to get closer to 38 percent and on higher volume. Getting up to even 37 percent on six or more attempts per game would open the floor significantly for Young and Johnson. Teams will know it's a big gamble to leave him open with numbers like that, and opposing defenses would have constant tough decisions to make when trying to guard the Hawks.

Beyond shooting, cutting is a key area where Risacher can improve. Risacher was an effective cutter in his pre-draft season, scoring more efficiently off cuts than he did as a spot-up shooter. He needs to figure out how to make that work with Young and Johnson's court vision and passing ability. Too often last season, he cut in a way that clogged Young's areas of operation or brought defenders where he shouldn't have. The NBA learning curve is steep, especially when playing with someone like Young, but Risacher needs to get the timing down to make a big step offensively next season.

Finally, attacking closeouts and converting those opportunities more consistently will be big for Risacher. This development will connect to improving as a shooter, forcing teams to contest harder, which will lead to Risacher having to put the ball on the floor. He'll need a reliable pull-up, floater, or become comfortable dunking on people regularly to convert these opportunities into points on the board as well.

A good comparison for the type of role Risacher should strive for is one similar to what Andrew Wiggins did for the Golden State Warriors when they won the 2022 NBA Championship. Capitalizing on the space and advantages created for him by the shooting gravity of his teammates to generate enough offense that he becomes a threat, opposing teams need to game-plan for him also. The ceiling of that Wiggins season is likely out of reach for Risacher this season, but something in that mold will help the Hawks as they aim to make a significant Eastern Conference push.