What’s the latest with Zvonimir Ivisic? Calipari still ‘confident’ Big Z will be eligible.
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Game day: No. 16 Kentucky 92, Georgetown College 69
Click below for more of the Herald-Leader’s and Kentucky.com’s coverage of Friday night’s men’s exhibition basketball game between Kentucky and Georgetown College in Rupp Arena.
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Zvonimir Ivisic didn’t make his Kentucky basketball debut Friday night.
But his absence was already expected before the Wildcats’ played outside competition for the first time this preseason, a 92-69 victory over Georgetown College in Rupp Arena.
After the game, John Calipari again expressed confidence that Ivisic — a 7-foot-2 recruit from Croatia — would ultimately be ruled eligible by the NCAA, which the UK coach implied was the only thing holding him up from taking the court for the first time with the Wildcats.
Asked whether Ivisic had suffered any kind of injury during his initial practices with the team or if there was any “medical concern” surrounding him, Calipari denied that was the case.
“No,” he said. “… He’s doing good. … If he were cleared, my guess is he would probably be able to play at the next exhibition. But you gotta get cleared first. I’m going to say again: I feel confident, knowing what I know.”
Calipari added that he “called the NBA” to make sure that Ivisic’s name was pulled out of the 2023 draft in time to retain NCAA eligibility. “And it was,” he said.
UK’s second and final exhibition is set for Thursday night against Kentucky State.
Calipari’s comments Friday night indicated that Ivisic’s eligibility status — and not any physical concerns — is what is keeping the freshman off the court.
He had said earlier this month that Ivisic would be eligible to play in both of Kentucky’s exhibition games, but UK released a statement Thursday making it clear that the new recruit is not yet cleared for outside competition.
“As a department, we want to clarify, Zvonimir Ivisic has been cleared to practice and play in all intrasquad games,” the statement read. “That said, he can not compete against outside competition, including exhibition games, until he is approved by the NCAA. There was miscommunication in this regard and, as we always do, we plan to adhere to NCAA rules. Until he is fully cleared, Zvonimir will be withheld from games against outside competition.”
There is no specific timetable for a ruling on Ivisic’s eligibility status.
An NCAA spokesperson told the Herald-Leader on Friday afternoon that the NCAA works with schools to “render eligibility decisions as quickly as possible.” There’s no guarantee that a final ruling will be made on Ivisic’s situation in time for the season opener Nov. 6. Some cases have quick resolutions, while others “require follow-up questions/responses which can extend the review timeline,” according to the spokesperson.
Ivisic played for a professional team in Europe before committing to Kentucky, though there are pathways to NCAA eligibility in such cases, if Ivisic and his team took the proper steps to preserve his amateur status.
Calipari has repeatedly said that he’s confident Ivisic will ultimately be cleared for competition and ruled fully eligible by the NCAA.
Big Z at Kentucky
Ivisic’s short time as a Wildcat has been a tumultuous one.
He committed to Kentucky on Aug. 1 and was expected to be in Lexington by the end of the month. Instead, a drawn-out university admissions process delayed his arrival and threw into question whether he’d ever make it to UK. The university confirmed to the Herald-Leader on Oct. 4 that Ivisic had been admitted as a student, and he arrived on campus Oct. 12, the day before Big Blue Madness.
Ivisic was introduced with his new teammates at Madness, but he didn’t participate in any basketball activities, instead milling around on the perimeter while the Wildcats warmed up before watching the scrimmage that night from the UK bench.
Before he walked off the court, Calipari told the Madness crowd that Ivisic would make his UK debut the following weekend at the Blue-White Game in Highland Heights.
But that didn’t happen either.
Ivisic didn’t go through his first full practice with the team until Oct. 18, and Calipari announced a few hours before the Blue-White Game on Oct. 21 that Ivisic wasn’t ready for such competition. Instead of playing, Ivisic went to the court early — with a full wrap around his left knee — and did a light individual workout with UK assistant coach Orlando Antigua before returning to the locker room.
Calipari said after the scrimmage that Ivisic’s conditioning wasn’t where it needed to be after three practices with the team.
“I mean, he was cramping — his calves, his hamstring, his groin, his knee,” he said. “I mean, he had everything going. ‘My ankle.’ And I just said, ‘Stop.’ We could have him for here, and then I’d be a man of my word. Or we could worry about the season. And I’m worried about the season. So I want to give him some time. Let’s see what this body can take.
“Now, I’m like, ‘You went three-a-days (back in Europe). How can our one practice wipe you out?’ Well, they didn’t play this way (in Europe). And it wasn’t as physical.”
Calipari also said after the Blue-White Game that he wasn’t worried about Ivisic’s eligibility status with the NCAA, but he did voice concern over the player’s physical condition.
“What I’m worried about is his body,” he said. “… My worry is: physically, how much can he play? That’s my worry. Now, let me say this. After three days of practice, it wasn’t a whole lot. And it was three days of practice.”
Calipari has also tried to temper the on-court expectations around Ivisic multiple times over the past few weeks, starting last week at SEC media day, just a few hours before Ivisic’s first full practice.
“If you think he’s ready to walk in, dominate a game, you’re not thinking right. He’s not,” Calipari said.
Kentucky’s other two 7-footers — Ugonna Onyenso and Aaron Bradshaw — are also sidelined due to offseason foot injuries. Bradshaw had surgery in June, and Onyenso had surgery in July. Neither have returned to full practice, and both players and Calipari declined to put any specific timetable on their returns during the team’s media day interviews Wednesday afternoon.
Calipari has only said that Bradshaw is further along in his recovery than Onyenso. All three of Kentucky’s 7-footers have been mentioned, to varying degrees, as NBA draft prospects in 2024.
With those three sidelined, 6-9 power forward Tre Mitchell is likely to play most of the minutes at center until at least one of them returns. Freshman guard Jordan Burks — listed at 6-8 — is expected to get a chance to be his primary backup. Mitchell led UK with 22 points and nine rebounds in the victory over Georgetown on Friday.
This story was originally published October 27, 2023 at 10:24 PM.
