No NCAA drama for Andrija Jelavic. He’s eligible to play for Kentucky basketball
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- NCAA cleared Andrija Jelavic to play for Kentucky in 2025-26, granting three seasons.
- Jelavic will be listed as a sophomore academically and athletically after transferred credits.
- Six-foot-11 forward brings perimeter shooting and frontcourt depth to Mark Pope’s rotation.
There will be no drawn-out process with the NCAA over the status of Kentucky’s latest international basketball addition.
Andrija Jelavic has been ruled eligible to play for the Wildcats during the 2025-26 season.
A UK spokesperson told the Herald-Leader that Jelavic, a 6-foot-11 forward from Croatia who played two seasons of professional basketball in Europe, has been “cleared for competition” after going through the NCAA’s eligibility process.
There is a catch.
Jelavic will be listed as a sophomore — in both academic and athletic standing — for the Wildcats this season. Jelavic took college-level courses during his time as a pro player and enough of those credits transferred for him to be designated as a sophomore at UK.
He will have three seasons of eligibility in college basketball as a result of the NCAA’s decision. Even though Jelavic has never played college basketball, this type of ruling has become more common with the influx of older, more experienced international players in recent years.
Last season, Illinois center Tomislav Ivisic — the twin brother of former UK player Zvonimir Ivisic — was deemed a sophomore for his first season of college ball after playing three years for a pro team in Europe and starting his NCAA career at age 21.
Jelavic, who is from Zagreb, Croatia, played the past two seasons for Serbian pro team Mega Superbet, which competes in the Adriatic League. He has also played for the Croatian junior national team in FIBA competitions. According to FIBA records, Jelavic turned 21 years old in May.
He arrived in Lexington in August and has been working out with the Wildcats since then. UK has completed two full weeks of preseason practice — college teams were permitted to move to 20 hours of on-court instruction per week starting Sept. 22 — and the Cats will be back in Rupp Arena on Saturday night for Big Blue Madness.
Kentucky’s first exhibition game — against national title contender Purdue — is set for Oct. 24 in Rupp, and the Cats will participate in the annual Blue-White Game in Memorial Coliseum on Oct. 17.
Touted as a highly versatile, 6-11, 225-pound player with a perimeter-based game, Jelavic is expected to provide frontcourt depth for Mark Pope’s team, which often utilizes four or five players on the perimeter offensively.
Alabama transfer Mouhamed Dioubate is expected to start for the Wildcats at the 4 spot, and Jelavic could back him up there while also moving around the positional spectrum based on matchups, as well as how quickly he acclimates himself to Pope’s system and the college game.
Jelavic averaged 11.0 points, 7.4 rebounds and 0.7 blocks in 27.8 minutes per game for his pro team this past season. He also shot 32.1% from 3-point range on 2.9 attempts per game.
He joins a frontcourt that also features Dioubate — listed at 6-7, 220 pounds — along with projected NBA lottery pick Jayden Quaintance (6-10, 225), returning junior Brandon Garrison (6-10, 245), McDonald’s All-American freshman Malachi Moreno (7-0, 250) and Miami (Ohio) transfer Reece Potter (7-1, 230).
Pope’s roster also includes 6-8 guard Kam Williams, 6-5 forward Trent Noah and 6-8 forward Braydon Hawthorne, who will all compete for minutes at the 3 and 4 positions.
Jelavic’s quick path through the NCAA process was expected, but it will still bring a collective sigh of relief from the UK fan base, which has weathered lengthy eligibility battles in the past.
Two seasons ago, Croatian forward Zvonimir Ivisic’s admission to UK was delayed until October, and he was not officially cleared for competition until January, further delaying his on-court progress and leading the freshman to miss a large chunk of Kentucky’s season.
UK’s 2010-11 season was marked by the NCAA’s decision to rule star recruit Enes Kanter ineligible due to his time with a Turkish pro team before coming to the United States. Kanter, who has since changed his name to Enes Kanter Freedom, sat out the entire 2010-11 season and was selected with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2011 NBA draft. He played 11 seasons in the NBA.
Jelavic has been viewed in the past as a possible NBA pick, though he is not currently listed on any prominent draft boards for 2026. Kentucky players will practice this week in front of NBA scouts, who are in Lexington for the program’s Pro Day event Tuesday night in Memorial Coliseum.
