Who is Alexandre Sarr? Everything you need to know about the potential No. 1 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft

Lady Luck shone most brightly on the Atlanta Hawks in the 2024 NBA Draft Lottery, with Quin Snyder’s team handed the No. 1 pick in the 2024 NBA Draft, which will take place at Barclays Center in Brooklyn on Wednesday 26 and Thursday 27 June. The inevitable question now is who the Hawks will use their pick on, with some tipping Alexandre Sarr to be this year’s most sought-after newcomer to the league.

The 2024 draft differs from last year’s in the sense that there is no real consensus as to the top projected pick. It was clear to everyone from the very beginning that Victor Wembanyama would be drafted first (which he was, by the San Antonio Spurs) in 2023, but things are less clear cut this time around.

“Wemby’s” compatriot Sarr, however, does appear to be in with the best chance of being the No. 1 pick, highly rated by the vast majority of “experts,” if not the top choice for every single one.

Will Alex Sarr return to Atlanta with the Hawks?

“Alex” Sarr is a 19-year-old center, who stands at 7 ft 1 in (2.16 m) and currently plays for the Perth Wildcats in Australia. Coincidenally, he previously performed in the Overtime Elite league in…Atlanta. Perhaps it’s written in the stars for the Hawks?

Inspired by being born into a family of basketball players, he first started playing at the age of four and moved from France to Spain at the age of 14 to join the Real Madrid academy in 2019.

He spent two years with Madrid before becoming the first European to join the Overtime Elite, a league for 16-20 year-olds which was founded in 2021 and is based in Atlanta. Sarr was among 30 players in the league guaranteed a minimum salary of at least $100,000 per year, plus bonuses and shares of equity.

After one season with Team Overtime and another with YNG Dreamerz in the development league, he began his professional basketball career in Australia’s National Basketball League in May 2023, joining the Perth Wildcats as part of the league’s Next Stars program.

What kind of player is Alex Sarr?

Sarr’s defensive abilities are what make him a standout, with Ben Couch of NBA.com describing the French youngster as “an impact player on defense who’s been growing into a larger role at the other end. Should offer immediate complementary help with the potential for more.”

The teenager is highly thought of on the basis his open-floor ball-handling and shotmaking will continue to develop, which should make him a serious threat at both ends of the court before too long.

Basketball runs in Sarr’s family

Sarr’s father, Massar, is a former professional player form Senegal, while older brother Olivier plays for the Oklahoma City Blue, an affiliate team of the Thunder’s, in the NBA G League.

Despite his Senegalese roots, Sarr was born and bred in France and has represented the French national team at junior level since 2021.

He has since made his way up to U19 level, winning a silver medal at the FIBA U19 World Cup in 2023 having previous taken home bronze at the U17 edition a year earlier.