On the eve of the draft, Sarr sat comfortably on a couch at the National Basketball Players Association headquarters in midtown Manhattan, even though he still didn’t know where his journey would take him next. He could follow in the footsteps of fellow Frenchman Victor Wembanyama and join the Atlanta Hawks with the No. 1 pick. Or, as many prognosticators believe, he could be selected No. 2 by the Washington Wizards. If he unexpectedly gets past the Hawks and Wizards, he won’t wait long to hear his name called, considering he’s drawn comparisons to all-defensive team stalwarts Jaren Jackson Jr. and Evan Mobley in because of its versatility.
“That’s the beautiful thing about this draft,” Sarr said Tuesday. “There is a lot of uncertainty. In 24 hours I won’t have the same problems. This is something I have to appreciate and cherish this moment. What suits me best is whichever team is willing to take a chance on me.
Sarr, French forward Zaccharie Risacher and Connecticut center Donovan Clingan are among the leading candidates to be the first player selected in perhaps the least predictable draft of the last decade. Atlanta’s stunning victory in the draft lottery – it had a 3 percent chance of winning the top spot – made this year’s class even harder to handicap ahead of Wednesday’s first round, which will be held at the Barclays Center from Brooklyn.
The Hawks made the 2023 playoffs before returning to the East play-in tournament last season, and they will face playoff expectations unless they pursue a rebuild by trading away goaltender Trae Young franchise. General manager Landry Fields said in a radio interview Tuesday that he had received calls about trading the No. 1 pick, but planned to select first “unless something impresses me “.
Atlanta’s options run the gamut stylistically. Risacher, 19, averaged 10.1 points and 3.8 rebounds while shooting 35.2 percent from three-point range for JL Bourg in France’s top league. A dynamic offensive player capable of stretching the floor, Risacher played regular minutes for Bourg, which posted a 25-9 record.
In contrast, Clingan, 20, is a traditional center who is 7-2 and helped Connecticut win its second straight national championship by averaging 13 points, 7.4 rebounds and 2.5 blocks as a sophomore. year.
Then there’s Sarr, a 19-year-old who appears to be the most physically gifted player in the class. He moves around the court as a mobile big man, citing Kevin Durant, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Hakeem Olajuwon as influences. He’s a talented shot blocker, but he’s also worked diligently on his outside shot because he knows modern centers need to be able to stretch the floor. He’s polished and confident in front of the cameras thanks to a step-by-step development approach that culminated in him averaging 9.7 points, 4.4 rebounds and 1.3 blocks in 17.2 minutes per game for Perth, which had the second-best record in the NBL.
“Whenever I felt comfortable in one place, that’s when I wanted to move and find a new challenge so I could improve,” Sarr said. “(In Australia) we played winning basketball and every possession counted. You had to focus on small details. I was gaining playing time because I had an impact on winning.
Sarr comes from a basketball family: his father, Massar, played professionally in France and his older brother, Olivier, spent the last three seasons with the Oklahoma City Thunder. At the age of 13, Sarr faced Risacher for the first time in French youth tournaments. There were no signs of a bitter rivalry as the prospects shared a laugh at a youth basketball camp Tuesday.
“We grew up together, competing against each other, and now we’re here in New York for the draft,” Risacher said. “It is special.”
As Risacher rose through the professional ranks in France, playing for former San Antonio Spurs star Tony Parker’s ASVEL club for several seasons before earning league best young player honors with JL Bourg this year, Sarr started collecting passport stamps. After a growth spurt made him a 7-footer, Sarr chose to focus on developing an all-around game rather than becoming a return-to-the-basket center. While the Wizards clearly need a mainstay after ranking 28th in defensive efficiency last season, Sarr doesn’t want to be pigeonholed. With Perth, he showed skills as a finisher above the rim and experimented with his outside shot, connecting on 29.8 percent of his attempts.
“I was never one-dimensional,” he said. “I was always trying things out on the court. My versatility gives me an edge over other people. I respect how skilled (Durant) is. He knows how to get to his spots. I respect the energy that Giannis plays with. He plays really hard, pushes the ball and gets to the rim. I get called a defensive player, but I’m better offensively than people give me credit for. My shooting is something that’s improving right now. My passing, my feel and my IQ (are overlooked). I’m a threat on both ends of the floor.”
The Hawks’ decision could hinge on their confidence in Sarr’s offensive potential. If he develops into a reliable ball-handler and capable outside shooter, he would seemingly have more long-term value than Risacher, who projects as a secondary scorer, or Clingan, who will do the vast majority of his work in the paint.
Unfortunately for Atlanta, Fields confirmed Tuesday that Sarr was scheduled to practice for the Hawks, but “declined” the invitation. Refusing to work out for one team in hopes of landing elsewhere is a relatively common tactic in the NBA draft, but top prospects rarely pass up the opportunity to be the top pick. The unusual move could boil down to immediate opportunity: Atlanta has two centers, Clint Capela and Onyeka Okongwu, on its roster, while Washington created a hole at the position by sending Daniel Gafford to the Dallas Mavericks at the trade deadline.
“I have a great team around me,” Sarr said during the media day. “(My agent) Bill Duffy and (the Endeavor agency), they’ve been through all this before. I trust them. I’m not going to go into detail about where I’ve worked and where I haven’t worked. Of course (I want to be the first pick), as a competitor, but for me it’s more important to be drafted.
Later, at players’ union headquarters, a relaxed Sarr confirmed that he had worked out for the Wizards and described talk of his Hawks’ snobbery as an embarrassing blip on the radar. In doing so, he already looked like a seasoned pro.
“Of course there are a lot of question marks,” he said. “…In 24 hours, this won’t be a problem anymore.”
News Source : www.washingtonpost.com
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