“Big Z is a dynamic and modern big who has guard-like skills but can make a major impact around the rim. Defensively, he is an elite shot blocker who moves well for being 7-foot-2 and can impact the game from the outside-in because of his ability to make 3s.” Head coach John Calipari, described Zvonimir Ivisic when he signed for the Kentucky Wildcats in 2023. Yes, he later followed his coach’s path to Arkansas.

One can understand why that is the case. “Coach Calipari is a Hall of Fame coach that sent more players to the NBA than anyone else.” The 21-year-old has established a legit ball handler and a rim protector. Let’s dive deep into how he reached this stage, which had ups and downs.

How Zvonimir Ivisic made his way to the USA

Before committing to college basketball, Zvonimir Ivisic had twice declared for the NBA draft. Ultimately, he withdrew both times in 2022 and 2023. Born to Mladenko and Marina Ivisic, he grew up in Vitez, Bosnia and Herzegovina. In the Central part of the country, his love for basketball developed at the age of 6. It was his father who pushed him and his twin brother towards hooping. Younger brother, by just 4 minutes, Tomislav is also playing in the US and they had a showdown in late November for the first time.

The twins moved to Sibenik, Croatia, when they were just 14 years old. “We moved to Šibenik because of the conditions and progress, and we made progress there to a certain extent.” Big Z once spoke to Mediabiro agency, where he also spoke about the next move in their careers.

“When we realized that development had, conditionally speaking, stopped, we decided on Podgorica and the Student Center. Podgorica is really different and bigger, it has more inhabitants. And the people of Podgorica are relaxed, easygoing.” The love from people really showed as the media dubbed them “the greatest Croatian basketball jewels” and “the Croatian twin towers.” Ringing in their 17 birthday in the capital of Montenegro.

“We motivate each other, we play the same sport, roughly the same position – I’m a center and he’s a power forward, it’s roughly the same. We’re there for each other, whoever needs something, and that’s a big advantage.” Tomislav Ivisic said to Prbjeda back in 2021.

The forward impressed and made many head turns with his performance in the Montenegrin Basketball League and for the Croatian national team. A member of SC Derby (Studentski Centar Podgorica) of the ABA League, Ivisic averaged 7.1 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks in just 14.5 minutes per contest in 33 games in 2022-23. He exploded in the Adriatic League playoffs, though, putting up 15.7 points and 8.3 rebounds per contest before falling in the quarterfinal series to eventual champion Partizan.

From there to now in the USA, both are thriving in their career, but it was not easy in the beginning for his elder twin.

Zvonimir Ivisic faced challenges right from his first season

For the national team, Zvonimir Ivisic represented them in 2019 on the under-16 basketball team. Later in 2023, he donned the national team jersey once again for the FIBA U20 European Championship, where he averaged 11.4 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 3.4 blocks per game. Plus, he also shot 34% from beyond the arc in that competition.

After withdrawing from the NBA draft, he accepted the call from Coach John Calipari. Everything that appeared to be smooth at the beginning turned into a long waiting game for the Croatian. After signing to play for Kentucky, the waiting period was 159 days. The NCAA had several requirements to clear Zvonimir Ivisic to play.

However, in that period, the 7-foot-2 star received so much love that the people were ready to launch a movement. Some of the Kentucky basketball fans were ready to fund a billboard campaign to encourage the NCAA to make an eligibility ruling for their Wildcats freshman. The UK fans hoped to raise $3,600 to place the “Free Big Z” billboard right in front of the NCAA Eligibility Center in Indianapolis.

Despite missing the first 16 games, the big man surely left his mark. In his 15 games, he averaged 5.5 points, 3.3 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game. Plus had a healthy shooting of 57.7% from the field and 37.5% from 3-point range. Despite his 11.7 minutes of game time, he ended up the season as the second most for blocks per game list. But later entered the transfer portal to follow his coach’s decision.

For the Arkansas, his career for the first time began with positivity. He began the season as a starter, where he played a pivotal role in the first game against Lipscomb. For the first seven games for the Razorbacks, #44 scored over 12 points in about 19 minutes per game. But since then, his time on the court has come down significantly.

Since December, the Croatian has only played has received double-digit minutes for 3 out of the last 7 games. Naturally, his scoring output has taken a hit, but still leads the team in blocks per game. Hopefully, his term with the Razorbacks improves. Or does it mean there is another transfer in the future? Or perhaps the eventual jump to the bigger league?