Hawks rookie forward Zaccharie Risacher knows that he will have an adjustment period when he makes his NBA debut when the regular season begins. But he’s setting himself to make the transition to the league go as smoothly as possible.
The 19-year-old already has put on over 20 pounds from the pre-draft process as he gets ready for the increased level of physicality that will come with the NBA. In the draft combine measurements, Risacher weighed in at 194.6 pounds. When the Hawks released their training-camp roster at the end of last month, they listed his weight as 215 pounds.
“Like I usually say, it’s amazing to be here and have people around me to prepare me for the season,” Risacher said Friday. “Like there is a job on the court, but also off the court with the all, the physio, training, preparation and everything. So it’s intense, and you got to be 100% on the court for the practice, and then after practice, already 100% on with the preparation, like the physical preparation. And that’s a good thing to do. I know what player I want to be and what I need to do to get better. So I love being in the gym and (doing) the preparation, like, physical preparation.”
Following Friday’s practice, Risacher went through an intense lifting session as part of his physical preparation. But he also understands the importance of the fuel he will need to make practice and his weightlifting sessions as productive as possible.
He’s taken advantage of the resources available to him at the Emory Healthcare Center, team’s practice facility in Brookhaven, while also leaning on some of the experience he gained from playing professionally in France.
“I already knew, like, the healing stuff was important, and I was doing as much as I could,” he said. “But I was by myself to do that in France. Now there is a chef, and there is a lot of people who can help me with that. Now I’m eating maybe more, a little bit like every not every hour, but every two hours I got something. So, that’s like, smarter than just three big meals and getting like, tired of eating every time a big portion. Now, I would say the approach is little bit smarter because there is professional (input), and back in France I was by myself to do it.”
He’s crafted a routine to help him with his caloric intake and so that he knows what to do every day. He, of course begins with breakfast. Then he hits the weight room before grabbing a snack before his individual work on the court, which follows up with another snack before team practice.
“When I’m saying eating, it’s protein shake, a little bar, like, quick stuff, with some protein on it,” Risacher said. “So then physical preparation again, then I’m eating shake or snack. I’m trying to eat, like I say, every two, three hours, so I can put some weight on my body.”
While Risacher takes full advantage of the chef at the practice facility, he’s also hired his own chef so that all he has to worry about is eating and the basketball stuff. In France with JL Bourg, he used to take care of his own meals and cleaning up.
But with the level of intensity of practices going up now that he’s in the NBA, the luxury of having a chef has allowed him to keep his focus 100% on making the on-court adjustment.
“I like to chill, and it’s great to have all the eating stuff already prepared,” Risacher said. “I used to cook, washing dishes, or whatever. I’m coming back from practice, and the food is really there, and then I eat, I leave like it’s all taken care of. And that’s, that’s special. Especially where I like I’m not used to where I come from. So that’s a big step for me, and I’m super happy to, like, I’m glad to to be in that position so I can take care of all this stuff, like basketball stuff, which I consider, for me right now more important than just outside stuff.”
The Hawks suit up for their first exhibition game against the Pacers on Tuesday. Risacher already has had a very small taste of NBA competition from playing in Summer League in July. But he’ll get his first spoonful soon, and each day he feels like he’s adjusting to the differences between the European league and the NBA.
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