New favorite for the top pick of the 2024 NBA Draft, and it’s probably someone you’ve never heard of

Unless you’re a true NBA Draft nerd or a huge fan of JL Bourg-en-Bresse (who? exactly), then you’ve probably never heard of the player projected to be selected first overall in two days.

The 2024 NBA Draft has repeatedly dipped and often been called the worst ever, and that lack of excitement is understandable when you look at the top end of the draft. For weeks, Alexandre Sarr was the favorite to finish first overall. About a month ago, basketball fans had probably never heard of Sarr, a big man from France.

Since late last week, Sarr has been replaced as the betting favorite to go first overall in the NBA Draft by Zaccharie Risacher, another French player you’ve probably never heard of. Risacher is a pretty big -225 favorite to finish first overall at BetMGM.

We’ve had disappointing NBA Drafts before. It’s rare that the first pick is virtually unknown to all but the most hardcore basketball fans.

Will Zaccharie Risacher be the first choice?

Just because Risacher is an unknown doesn’t mean he won’t be a good player in the NBA. The Atlanta Hawks have the first pick in this oft-ridiculed draft and if the odds are right, that’s where Risacher will go.

It’s just that Risacher is a mystery, just like Sarr. Other international players who are about to finish first in the overall rankings usually have a lot of buzz surrounding them, most notably Victor Wembanyama last year. This could be the first time a majority of NBA fans tune into the draft and get their first taste of the top overall pick.

Risacher is a 6-9 forward who can shoot well from behind the three-point line. He averaged 11.1 points last season for French team JL Bourg-en-Bresse, whose home arena seats 3,548 people. Risacher has upside as he gets bigger, and that makes him stand out in this draft class. Late last week, there were reports that Risacher would be the top pick, and that caused the BetMGM odds to change.

Soon, Risacher could join the historic list of names picked first in the NBA Draft, even if many fans aren’t aware of him just days before he’s picked.

Once again, the odds for the No. 1 pick are shifting

The odds shift on Risacher isn’t the first time the betting market has drastically changed draft odds in the days or hours before the first pick takes place.

The trend of the betting market being ahead of the first pick of the NBA or NFL draft has slowed lately, but that was mainly because picks like Caleb Williams and Wembanyama were obvious. This year’s NBA Draft does not have a consensus top player, meaning the draft odds would fluctuate a bit before the pick was made.

There is still time for a new shift. For a while, there were rumors that UConn big man Donovan Clingan could be the first pick. Casual basketball fans have probably heard that name, if they watch March Madness at all.

But for now, the market seems to believe Risacher will be the pick. Then we can find out everything about him.