NBA

Hawks Rookie Zaccharie Risacher Out At Least 1 Week With Adductor Injury

Atlanta Hawks Rookie Zaccharie Risacher Out At Least 1 Week With Adductor Injury

Atlanta Hawks forward Zaccharie Risacher, the No. 1 overall pick of the 2024 NBA draft, will sit out at least another week due to a strained left adductor, the team announced Tuesday.

Atlanta Hawks rookie forward Zaccharie Risacher has sat out the last three games with a strained left adductor

Risacher, 19, already has missed three games with the injury, and Atlanta said in a statement that he’s “progressing in his rehabilitation and will be re-evaluated in approximately one week.”

Through 39 games (37 starts) this season, Risacher has averaged 10.5 points, 3.5 rebounds, 1.2 assists, and 23.7 minutes while shooting 40.3% from the field, just 28.1% from 3-point range, and 71.3% at the free throw line.


In Atlanta’s 121-116 win over the New York Knicks on Nov. 6, he recorded a career-high 33 points on 11-of-18 (61.1%) shooting from the floor, 6-of-10 (60%) from deep, and 5-of-9 (55.6%) at the foul line.

Additionally, the Frenchman grabbed a career-high nine rebounds at Boston on Nov. 12. He has posted seven games this season with at least 15 points scored.

Risacher signed a four-year, $57 million rookie-scale contract

The Hawks rookie has been performing well enough in his first year to impress head coach Quin Snyder.

“Zacch, they say has a really high ceiling. Growth isn’t linear. He’s had 31-point games, four-point games, I don’t even know. And honestly, that’s not to me what his developmental arc needs to look like,” said Snyder.

“He’s been a pleasure to coach; he’s a great teammate. The one thing people weren’t most aware of is his versatility on defense. He’s had to guard a lot of matchups.

“He guarded on the perimeter in the Eurocup and the French League, but we’ve asked him to do that in a lot of significant matchups. And he’s risen to the occasion on that. I think he’s having a heck of a year and looking forward to continuing to see him grow.”

After the NBA draft, Risacher agreed to a four-year, $57 million rookie-scale contract with the Hawks. In fact, he’s earning $12.6 million this season and is slated to make $13.2 million in 2025-26. His two team option years are worth $13.8 million (2026-27) and $17.4 million (2027-28).

The Hawks also recently got back fourth-year forward Jalen Johnson, their second-leading scorer (19.4 PPG), from a five-game absence due to shoulder inflammation.