The Atlanta Hawks won the No. 1 overall pick despite having the 10th-best odds in the 2024 NBA Draft Lottery. Their early target with the pick was Alexandre Sarr, but it seems the French center has not worked out in Atlanta despite the franchise’s attempts to bring him in. This has caused Zaccharie Risascher or Donovan Clingan to be favorites for the No. 1 spot, according to Jonathan Givony.
“The Hawks have been unable to bring Alex Sarr in for a workout to this point, but the door remains open for that to potentially happen. Clingan appears to be Risacher’s main rival at No. 1.”
Clingan is the other top center in the draft and is gaining steam to go No. 1 after good workouts and interviews around the league.
“His workout — where he shot the ball extremely well, showed surprisingly good passing ability operating out of short rolls, and was impressive both in film study and in interviews — helped his draft standing and makes him as possible sleeper selection here, as we’ve discussed for several weeks.”
Clingan is a 7’2″ center from Dan Hurley’s UConn Huskies, who averaged 13.0 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 2.5 blocks last season. The sophomore has been rising rapidly on Draft boards and was initially expected to go to the Grizzlies with the ninth pick.
If the Hawks want to stick with drafting a long-term Clint Capela replacement who could fit next to Trae Young or Dejounte Murray, Clingan might be the best option if Sarr is avoiding workouts with the Hawks.
Is Alexandre Sarr Avoiding The Atlanta Hawks?
It seems extremely bizarre why a prospect is avoiding a workout with the team that has the No. 1 overall pick in the Draft. Either Sarr is dealing with an issue nobody knows about or he’s actively avoiding putting himself within the crosshairs of the Hawks.
That doesn’t make a lot of sense, as the No. 1 overall pick receives the biggest contract in the rookie class. In addition, the Hawks are a team with winning intent, which would avoid the pain most rookies go through of spending years on a tanking team before having the opportunity to contend.
There are major organizational questions the Hawks have to answer, which could be one of the reasons Sarr is hesitant about going to the franchise. They’re rumored to split up the guard pairing of Young and Murray, with that decision being consequential to a rookie center coming into the league.
Nonetheless, it’s hard to see why that decision would be so important that Sarr would rather risk being drafted by the Wizards at No. 2, a franchise with a worse competitive record over the last five years. The Rockets at No. 3 already have Alperen Sengun as their center of the future and the Hornets at No. 4 would be unappealing for the same reasons as the Wizards.
Whatever is going on with Sarr not working out for the Hawks should be monitored, especially if it leads to a Draft Day surprise like Clingan going No. 1 overall.
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