Zaccharie Risacher came into the NBA as the No. 1 overall pick in 2024, with the Atlanta Hawks selecting the French forward first. Two seasons later, Risacher is with the Dallas Mavericks, and he still isn’t sure why his time in Atlanta came to an end.
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Speaking on the Locked On Mavericks podcast, Risacher was asked what went wrong with the Hawks. He admitted that he was surprised by how things unfolded, especially after being told he had exceeded expectations during his rookie season.
“I honestly don’t know because I feel like I had a good first season where after my first season I was told that I had a great year and I was like, I went over the expectation.”
The interviewer clarified that Risacher meant he had exceeded expectations. Risacher agreed before explaining why his second season felt so different.
“It was really like surprising for me this second season. Didn’t like, didn’t know much about what was happening. But at the same time, I was a part of a team that was competing for a playoff spot. And I understand that’s a part of the game.”
Zaccharie Risacher’s Production Shifted Before Hawks Trade
Risacher’s second season brought a noticeable change in his production and role. After averaging 12.6 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.2 assists in 75 games as a rookie, he averaged 9.6 points, 3.8 rebounds and 1.1 assists in 67 games during the 2025-26 season. He also made the All-Rookie First Team and finished second in Rookie of the Year voting after his debut campaign.
His role became even smaller during Atlanta’s first-round playoff series against the New York Knicks. Risacher appeared in three games and averaged 3.7 points and 3 rebounds while shooting 35% from the field.
The possibility of Atlanta moving on from Risacher had already surfaced months before the eventual trade. In December 2025, reporting indicated that the Hawks were willing to include the former No. 1 pick in the right scenario as the team considered moves around the roster.
That scenario eventually arrived in July. Atlanta sent Risacher and a protected 2027 second-round pick to Dallas in a three-team trade. The Hawks received Luguentz Dort from Oklahoma City and Ryan Nembhard from Dallas, while the Thunder received three second-round picks.
Atlanta’s explanation for the move also provides another side to Risacher’s uncertainty. Hawks president of basketball operations Onsi Saleh explained why the opportunity to acquire Dort appealed to the organization.
“Zacch did everything right for us. He’s really good for us. We wish him the best, and I think it’s just when you have an opportunity to trade for a guy that was first-team all-defense, NBA champions, started for an NBA championship team, and we saw, like, the physicality in the playoffs, and we needed to up that a little bit.”
Saleh pointed to Dort’s defensive credentials and championship experience while explaining that Atlanta wanted to respond to the physicality it saw during the playoffs. Dort had been named First Team All-Defense and won a championship with Oklahoma City in 2025.
For Risacher, however, the trade remains something he did not see coming after his rookie season. His comments centered on the uncertainty surrounding his changing role in Atlanta, while Saleh’s explanation focused on the roster direction that led the Hawks toward Dort.
Now in Dallas, Risacher has a new environment alongside Cooper Flagg and Kyrie Irving. The Mavericks acquired him while he remains just 21 years old, giving him another opportunity to establish himself after two very different seasons in Atlanta.