As the basketball world continues to wait on the decision of LeBron James and where he’s going to finish out his legendary career, a surprising trade went down on Sunday afternoon.
ESPN insider Shams Charania was first to break the news on X (formerly Twitter) that the Atlanta Hawks, Dallas Mavericks, and Oklahoma City Thunder had connected on a three-team trade. The deal most notably sends 2024 first-overall pick Zaccharie Risacher to Dallas, while Lu Dort and Ryan Nembhard are heading to Atlanta. Oklahoma City, meanwhile, clears cap space and stocks up on draft picks.
“BREAKING: The Oklahoma City Thunder trading All-Defensive wing Lu Dort to the Atlanta Hawks in a three-team deal that sends three second-round picks to OKC, former No. 1 pick Zaccharie Risacher to the Dallas Mavericks and Ryan Nembhard to Atlanta, sources tell ESPN.
The Hawks now are teaming up a 27-year-old elite defender in Dort with Dyson Daniels and Nickeil Alexander-Walker on the wings — and will have $40+ million in cap space next summer. Atlanta pursued several wings this offseason before landing Dort,”
The 21-year-old Risacher’s numbers took a step back in Year 2, averaging 9.6 points per game, 3.8 rebounds per game, and 1.1 assists per game across 67 appearances. On the other hand, Dort, 27, averaged 8.3 PPG, 3.6 RPG, and 1.2 APG in 69 games played, while Nembhard, 23, averaged 6.6 PPG, 5.3 APG, and 2.2 RPG in 60 appearances.
Dallas now has the 2024 and 2025 first-overall picks in Risacher and Cooper Flagg, respectively, as new president of basketball operations Masai Ujiri looks to build the Mavericks back into a contender post-Luka Doncic.
The Hawks, meanwhile, give up on Risacher relatively early, though with a very strong rotation of wings and defenders, along with Dort now coming into the fold, he became rather expendable. Nonetheless, it will be fascinating to see if the young Frenchman can reach his potential in a new situation with other talent developing alongside him.
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