The Atlanta Hawks were once the most interested team in making a deal with the Dallas Mavericks for Anthony Davis, and Dallas is lucky that their interest cooled off and they ultimately traded him to the Washington Wizards. Zaccharie Risacher, a player that the Mavs would’ve likely landed in a Davis trade with the Hawks, has hit rock bottom.

Zaccharie Risacher’s struggles just exploded

In Atlanta’s Game 2 win over the New York Knicks on Monday night, Risacher was a DNP-CD from Quin Snyder. This was just the second time in his entire career that he hadn’t subbed into a game despite being active, with the first time being less than two weeks ago.

Snyder showed signs that he didn’t trust Risacher in Game 1, as he only played for two minutes at the end of the first quarter. He missed all three of his shot attempts, picked up a foul, and had a -5 plus-minus during this span as well. This is not a very promising start to the former No. 1 overall pick’s playoff career, and Dallas clearly got a good package by making a deal with Washington.

Marvin Bagley III was a revelation for the Mavericks, and Khris Middleton made a strong impact as well. Both players were key members of their rotation to end the season, and while Risacher is younger than both players and has potential, his ceiling is looking lower than ever at this stage of his career.

Getting benched in a playoff game isn’t some small development, and if Risacher can’t play during the playoffs, he isn’t someone that the Mavericks would’ve ever been able to build around. He and Cooper Flagg once seemed like a fun duo since they were first overall picks in back to back seasons, but Dallas was better off receiving the expiring contracts and draft capital from the Wizards.

Wizards’ package is far stronger than what the Hawks would’ve offered

This trade put the Mavericks in a position to pursue key free agents this summer, as they now have access to the MLE. If Dallas had traded Davis to Atlanta, they likely would’ve had Risacher on their books until the end of the 2027-28 season. Having a player on your roster who’s making about $15 million annually who can’t even crack the playoff rotation is a major red flag, and the Mavs’ decision to search elsewhere for a deal keeps looking better.

Instead of worrying about if Risacher is even worth a spot in the rotation, the Mavericks have cap space, five draft picks, and two key free agents in Bagley III and Middleton that they could explore bringing back. Dallas did the best they possibly could when trading Davis, as they got value back for a player who is dealing with an unforeseen hand injury.

Every poor game that Risacher has makes the Mavericks look smarter, and having two No. 1 picks on the roster in Kyrie Irving and Flagg is enough for the time being.

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