Jalen Johnson & Zaccharie Risacher have formed a nice tandem on the wing for this young Atlanta Hawks team. They find themselves battling injuries and a rigorous schedule en route to a 14-11 record. Regardless of the adversity, every member of the Hawks' core has shown flashes of growth as they fill in the gaps of this roster to form a long-term championship contender.
For Risacher, the spotlight has only magnified as the media compares him to last summer’s No.1 overall pick Cooper Flagg. It’s a common occurrence to compare No.1 overall picks, especially when they’re a year apart in age and Draft Class. Unfortunately for Zaccharie, many pundits feel like Cooper is having the better rookie season, but for those watching Risacher, he’s been perfect in his role.
Developing chemistry with Johnson has been crucial for his acclimation to the NBA. Jalen has proven himself as a young star this season, and his gravity has allowed Risacher to take advantage.
Whether making a backdoor cut or running on the fastbreak, it’s evident that they can fit together. However, this off-ball action has been Risacher’s primary method of offensive production as of late.
As of December 10th, Risacher has been in a shooting slump, averaging 11.1 points, 2.8 rebounds, and 1.5 assists while shooting 45% from the field. His three-point shot has struggled, averaging 22.5% over his last ten games, but the numbers don’t reflect his true impact. He still has plenty of time to prove himself, and Johnson has encouraged him every step of the way.
Risacher and Johnson could be a special wing partnership
While answering questions from the media after a recent practice, the two forwards shared their thoughts now that a quarter of the season is complete. Atlanta Hawks reporter Lauren Williams of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution was in attendance and reported on the scrum in a recent piece.
When asked about his opinion on the team’s performance, Zaccharie replied:
“I feel like we’ve been playing good,” Risacher said. “The chemistry is great between us. We’re playing as a team, you know, I feel like everybody really fits into this philosophy, and we just got to keep going, you know, keep playing hard.
The 20-year-old Frenchman remains optimistic about where the Hawks stand in the East as they get some much-needed rest during the Emirates NBA Cup.
“And even though, it’s only like 25 games, there’s a lot of game left. I feel like that’s a good base for us to work on for the rest of the season," Risacher said. "And now that we’re home for like, a couple of days, it’s great to have feedback and be able to practice a little bit, to see what we’ve been doing, what was working, what was now, if we wanted to make some adjustments.”
Shortly after Zaccharie left the podium, it was now time for Jalen to speak, and the rising star revealed advice he shared with the former LNB All-Star during this rough patch.
“Sometimes you got to remind him he was a No. 1 pick and that wasn’t no fluke,” Johnson said.
Jalen has kept an eye on Zaccharie all season, and he’s admired his work ethic from afar. His determination to improve his jump shot has been insatiable, leading him to stay 40 minutes after practice to get out of his shooting slump.
“But you know, with Zacch, he’s somebody that’s always working. Like, right now, he’s the last person getting shots up. That’s a consistent thing with him,” Johnson said. “So, if he just keeps doing that and sticking to his routine, he’s gonna start hitting shots again, and we’re all around him and support him and understand that he’s gonna get out of this slump.”
When Risacher is on, it only makes Jalen even better, having a three-point marksman by his side. The 23-year-old point forward is averaging a career high in assists with 7.9 per game, and it’ll only increase once Risacher achieves his full potential as a shooter.