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Illinois basketball can use the transfer portal to have two monsters in the paint

The transfer portal hasn't been friendly to the Illinois basketball program yet, but adding this big man would be huge for the team.
ByRees Woodcock|
Mar 22, 2025; Providence, RI, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks forward Zvonimir Ivisic (44) and teammates celebrate after defeating the St. John's Red Storms in a second round men’s NCAA Tournament game at Amica Mutual Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images
Mar 22, 2025; Providence, RI, USA; Arkansas Razorbacks forward Zvonimir Ivisic (44) and teammates celebrate after defeating the St. John's Red Storms in a second round men’s NCAA Tournament game at Amica Mutual Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images | Brian Fluharty-Imagn Images

The stink from how the 2024-25 season ended for the Illinois basketball team won’t go away.

It is going to take a minute for that stink to wear off. The Illini had such a good team, and it ended in such a bad way. But there were some bright spots throughout the entire year.

I loved the way Tomislav Ivisic played. I think he is a special talent, and now Illinois has a chance to go out and get someone similar to Tomi.

On Monday afternoon, Joe Tipton of On3.com reported that big man Zvonimir Ivisic has decided to enter the transfer portal.

Does that name sound familiar? It is the brother of Tomi. Zvonimir has spent two seasons in college thus far. He came over from Croatia and suited up for Kentucky as a freshman. He averaged 5.5 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 1.3 blocks per game that season.

After John Calipari bolted for Arkansas, Ivisic followed. He transferred to the Razorbacks and played in 35 games and started in 19 contests last season. During that campaign, Ivisic averaged 8.5 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 1.9 blocks per game.

The transfer portal could provide Illinois basketball with a dangerous one-two punch in the paint with Zvonimir Ivisic

When I first saw the news that the eldest Ivisic brother was transferring, it instantly piqued my interest. This is exactly what Illinois needs right now.

Tomislav and Zvonimir could feed off each other. Tomi was huge for Illinois this past season. He was able to stretch the floor and shoot from three-point range. He also had good touch around the hoop.

Tomi’s older brother is starting to develop into the same type of player. Zvonimir took 3.6 three-point attempts per game as a sophomore and hit them at a clip of 37.6%. Having two big men who average over a block a game and shoot better than 35% from three-point range sounds incredible.

I think Illinois has a legitimate chance to land Zvonimir as well. He originally played for Orlando Antigua at Kentucky, who has been good at recruiting international players. Antigua then came back to Illinois and landed Tomi. Now, let’s see if he can bring the brothers together for one legendary run.

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