NBA Draft: Atlanta Hawks select French teenager Zaccharie Risacher as first pick

The Atlanta Hawks selected French forward Zaccharie Risacher with the first pick in the NBA draft.

This is the second year in a row that a French player has been chosen first.

Last year, there was little doubt that Victor Wembanyama would be the number one pick, while this year, Risacher and compatriot Alexandre Sarr have frequently traded places at the top of mock drafts over the past month.

Risacher, 19, stands 6-foot-9 and weighed 195 pounds at the draft in May, having recently played in the French elite for JL Bourg-en-Bresse.

“(It’s) so exciting,” he told ESPN. “There are a lot of feelings and emotions right now. I don’t know what to say, I’m so blessed.”

The Washington Wizards selected Sarr, also 19, with the second overall pick after the center spent the 2023-24 campaign with the Perth Wildcats of the Australian National Basketball League.

It was the third time in NBA draft history that the top two picks had no college experience, although Sarr’s brother, Olivier, 25, is a center on the Oklahoma City Thunder.

“He shared a lot with me,” Alexandre Sarr told ESPN. “Everything I learned was thanks to him and he passed on all his knowledge to me. Even today, it’s really special to have someone like him by my side.”

Kentucky’s Reed Sheppard went to the Houston Rockets with the third pick and UConn’s Stephon Castle landed with the San Antonio Spurs at number four.

G League Ignite’s Ron Holland, who will join the Detroit Pistons, rounded out the top five, while Tidjane Salaun had three French players among the top six picks, with the 18-year-old being selected by the Charlotte Hornets.

Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James said he wants to play with or against his son before the 39-year-old ends his NBA career.

Bronny James, 19, is expected to be selected in the second round on Thursday. The Lakers selected Dalton Knecht 17th overall and their next pick will come late in the second round.

This year’s draft was split into two days, with the first round taking place at the Barclays Center in New York while the second will take place at ESPN’s Seaport District Studios, also in New York.