Egor Demin, Kasparas Jakucionis, Tomislav Ivisic, and Zvonimir Ivisic were all successful in their debut NCAA basketball seasons, proving that the European market must be tapped for programs that are looking to compete for the national championship. With the 2024-25 NCAA season fully behind us, schools are wasting no time in signing up some of the top young European talent for next season.
David Mirkovic, a 6-foot-9 19-year-old Montenegrin forward, spent last season in the Adriatic League with SC Derby and averaged 11.9 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 2.1 assists per game on 44/35/70 shooting splits. He’ll be joining the Illini, clear leaders on the European recruitment front, next season. Mirkovic can play either forward spot and provide spacing, and interior strength, and potentially be a notable scorer for Illinois next season. A strong showing at the NCAA level could make Mirkovic consider entering the 2026 NBA Draft, but it currently seems more likely that he will spend at least two seasons in college basketball.
Aleksa Dimitrijevic, a 7-foot-1 Serbian center out of Partizan Belgrade’s youth system, will be joining Creighton University for the 2025-26 season. He’ll join Fedor Zugic, the Montenegrin wing who was a good get for Creighton last summer but ultimately struggled in his freshman season of college basketball. Dimitrijevic did not get a lot of senior playing time this season, featuring in only one game, but has impressed at the youth level in seasons prior. He’s a highly-skilled big who can score down low and stretch the floor and could be an elite weapon for Creighton next season.
Last but certainly not least on the overseas recruitment front is Andrija Jelavic. The Croatian center spent last season with Serbian development powerhouse KK Mega Basket. He averaged 10.6 points and 7.4 rebounds per game on 50/32/67 shooting splits. At 6-foot-11 and turning 21 years old soon, he’s a massive recruit for the University of Kentucky. At 21 years old with a significant amount of professional experience already under his belt, Jelavic will only be a freshman and have a chance at a dominant NCAA career.
What’s notable about Jelavic’s recruitment is that he’s coming over from KK Mega Basket. While European clubs have faltered in their ability to regularly develop NBA-level talent, with clubs like Joventut Badalona particularly falling off in this regard in the past decade, Mega was an exception to this. The club is run by European super-agent Misko Raznatovic and has helped develop Nikola Jokic, Nikola Jovic, Ivicia Zubac, and other notable NBA players in recent times. While Jelavic is on the older side for a prospect, and that could be a driving factor in going the NCAA route, it is worth noting that the University of Kentucky offers something more appealing for development than one of Europe’s best development clubs at the moment.
Mirkovic and Dimitrijevic were playing for clubs either less known for player development or seldom playing at the senior level at all, in Dimitrijevic’s case. Their decision to pursue the NCAA route is more standard. Mirkovic and Jelavic are also both represented by Raznatovic, who has built Mega into the basketball factory it is today, and his work to get Mirkovic and Jelavic NCAA deals is a tacit acknowledgement that currently, NCAA basketball in the States offers much more to young prospects than even the best development clubs in Europe can.
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