Kentucky Basketball: Wildcats fill out rotation with center Zvonimir Ivisic

Kentucky Basketball was in need of some frontcourt depth while dealing with some current injuries. Landing Zvonimir Ivisic was the ideal last roster piece.

It’s been an incredibly long offseason for Kentucky Basketball, particularly with the roster-building aspect. After former National Player of the Year big man Oscar Tshiebwe left for the NBA Draft and multiple role players transferred out, there was a complete lack of depth.

The good news was that they were able to keep Ugonna Onyenso after he originally entered the transfer portal. Plus, 5-star incoming freshman Aaron Bradshaw joined the loaded 2023 incoming recruiting class. And the Wildcats benefitted from West Virginia’s roster exodus after the Bob Huggins saga, landing transfer forward, Tre Mitchell.

But the GLOBL JAM Tournament a couple of weeks ago exposed a lack of depth inside for the team. Bradshaw already was recovering from a foot injury weeks prior, while Onyenso got hurt in an exhibition game. Both are hopeful to be ready by the start of next season but with bigs and foot issues, it’s never a done deal. So with two scholarships available, it made sense for Kentucky to get one more big to solidify the roster.

And that they did with Zvonimir Ivisic, a 7’2 center from Croatia. He’s viewed as a legit NBA Draft prospect, a skilled big man that can shoot from deep. In the U20 Tournament, Ivisic averaged over 11 ppg and over three blocks a game per 40 minutes. Although he’s a foreign prospect, this is viewed as a high four-star caliber newcomer Kentucky Basketball was able to get late.

There were some concerns about his eligibility but that seems to have passed, giving the Wildcats another legit big man. If nothing else, he’s set to give them needed depth inside and should be part of the rotation in one way or another.

After seeing the success Kentucky had playing small ball, it’s going to be very interesting how Coach John Calipari works with these new bigs once they’re all healthy. But considering that the team had just seven confirmed roster players midway through the offseason, it’s going to be a welcomed problem to deal with.