​In recent years, UCLA men’s basketball coach Mick Cronin has been outspoken and critical about changes to the sport, including Name, Image and Likeness and the transfer portal. Yet Cronin has remained adaptable, casting a wide net for talent, even abroad. On Thursday, the Bruins announced the signing of Nikola Kusturica, a 6-foot-9 guard from Serbia who stands as the most significant international addition Cronin has secured since taking the UCLA job in 2019. Kusturica, who turned 17 on April 30, agreed to a multiyear deal with UCLA, a development first noted by ESPN’s Jeff Borzello, who added that Kusturica had also considered Kentucky, Michigan and Gonzaga.
Kusturica is viewed as a potential No. 1 pick in the 2028 NBA draft. He could have been a lottery selection in the next year’s draft, but he is currently too young to meet the eligibility requirements. At the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup held this month, Kusturica posted averages of 24.6 points, 6.9 rebounds, 2.3 steals and 1.7 blocks per game, while shooting 46.8% from the field and 26% from beyond the arc. He earned a spot on the tournament’s All-Star Five, alongside Team USA performers Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje and Beckham Black, Turkiye guard Omer Kutluay, and Australian guard Luke Paul. He was also named the event’s best defensive player.
In the championship game, Kusturica delivered 37 points and nine rebounds, hitting 9 of 23 field goals and 17 of 22 free throws, though Serbia fell 107-81 to a U.S. squad that dominated with an undefeated record and an average margin of victory exceeding 48 points. Team USA featured several of the nation’s premier high school talents, including Boumtje Boumtje, a 6-foot-11 forward who is set to play for Duke this coming season. Boumtje Boumtje turned 17 on May 30 and won’t be eligible for the NBA draft until 2028, the same year as Kusturica, who also spent the previous season with FC Barcelona in Spain. While many top NBA prospects spend only a single season in college, Boumtje Boumtje and Kusturica are expected to spend two seasons in college before entering the professional ranks, building name recognition along the way.
At UCLA, Kusturica is anticipated to step in immediately and serve as a leading scorer and focal point for the team. The Bruins return three players who logged substantial minutes last season: guard Trent Perry, who averaged 12.6 points per game, and forwards Eric Dailey Jr. (11.6 ppg) and Xavier Booker (7.3 ppg). The program also added two high school recruits in center Javonte Floyd and power forward Joe Philon, along with four transfers: forwards Filip Jovic (Auburn) and Sergej Macura (Mississippi State) and guards Jaylen Petty (Texas Tech) and Azavier Robinson (Butler). They also welcomed another international prospect in 6-foot-7 forward Gunars Grinvalds, who turned 18 in January and played last season for Real Madrid in Spain.
Despite the surrounding noise about the evolving landscape of college basketball, Kusturica is clearly the crown jewel of UCLA’s class. Even though he has no prior residence in the United States, he is familiar with Nemanja Jovanovic, UCLA’s director of international recruiting. Jovanovic, a native of Serbia and an assistant coach with the Serbs, is instrumental in bridging Kusturica’s transition to the Bruins and in strengthening UCLA’s international recruitment network.