Hawks' Trae Young makes Rookie of the Year case for Zaccharie Risacher after 38-point game
Zaccharie Risacher set a new career high in scoring on Thursday, leading the Atlanta Hawks to a key victory in the race to secure the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference.
Risacher produced 38 points, four rebounds, two assists, two steals and one blocked shot in a 133-109 win over the Brooklyn Nets on the road. He went 15-of-20 from the field, including 6-of-11 from 3-point range, and was a team-high plus-28 on the court in 34 minutes.
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The No. 1 pick finished with the most points in a game by a rookie this season, topping the 37 points scored by Los Angeles Lakers forward Dalton Knecht on Nov. 19. He had 23 points alone in the first half, his fourth 20-point half of the season.
He earned high praise from Trae Young afterward.
I was hoping he got 40 tonight. The way he was playing was so nice, so effortless. It was great to see. We need him to keep it going. That is the Rookie of the Year right there. ... Zacch is very, very aggressive. He is very smart. There are a lot of guys who are tall, athletic and skilled, but there are not a lot that have all three combined with smartness. ... He is so skilled. He has got the brightest future of any rookie that I've seen this year.
The win kept the Hawks one game ahead of the Chicago Bulls in eighth place and the right to face the Orlando Magic in the play-in tournament on Tuesday in Central Florida. The seed is coveted since it would give the team that claims it two chances to earn a playoff berth.
Risacher is averaging 12.7 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.3 assists on 35.5% shooting from 3-point range in 73 games with the Hawks. He is second among all rookies in total scoring (924) and is the only first-year player with four 30-point games this season.
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The reigning Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month has connected on at least five 3-pointers in all four of his 30-point outings, tied for the third-most occurrences by a first-year player in history. Only Allen Iverson (7) and Young (5) have more such performances.
Risacher is making a late push for Rookie of the Year, though he will likely come up short to San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle. But the Frenchman is ascending at the right time for the Hawks and impressing the organization seemingly on a nightly basis.
"The consistency of his competitiveness (impresses me the most)," Hawks coach Quin Snyder said of Risacher. "I think for someone that is embracing competing in a league against night in and night out -- to me -- the best athletes in the world and his ability to take that with an even keel and still compete at a high level regardless of how much success he has in any given moment (is what) mentally, I think, has allowed him to continue to improve throughout the course of the season."
This article originally appeared on Rookie Wire: Hawks news: Zaccharie Risacher joins elite group after 38-point game
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