UCLA lands highly touted Serbian small forward

UCLA coach Mick Cronin received a spirited recruiting battle for one of the top European prospects, touchdown wing participant Nikola Kusturica on Thursday.

Kentucky, Michigan and Gonzaga had courted Kusturica, a 6-foot-9 Serbian who is among the top 17-year-old gamers in Europe. Recruiting web sites listed Kusturica as a five-star prospect, and school basketball analysts at Field of 64 and other shops project Kusturica could possibly be a top-five 2028 NBA draft decide.

UCLA announced it obtained a signed grant-in-aid settlement from Kusturica, who will be part of the Bruins for the upcoming season.

He provides to a freshman class that already included three-star middle Javonte Floyd from Cedar Grove High in Atlanta and four-star forward Joe Philon III from Montverde Academy in Tampa, Fla. — both of whom signed in April and enrolled in summer season courses — and Gunars Grinvalds of Latvia, a former Real Madrid forward who dedicated to the Bruins on June 5.

“We are very excited to add Nikola to our program,” Cronin said. “Nikola is an elite prospect with great size, skill and a competitive fire which is hard to find. As a 6-foot-9 guard, he can play all over the floor. He impacts the game as a scorer, playmaker and shot blocker. For a very young player, Nik has had a decorated career with the Serbian national team and his club team in Barcelona. UCLA appreciates the support of his international team and his club for their cooperation and development of Nikola.”

Kusturica is predicted to arrive in Westwood early next month and be part of staff exercises that started on Thursday and continue for eight weeks.

Kusturica signed with FC Barcelona’s youth staff in 2023 and grew to become the youngest athlete to play in the Spanish membership’s program. He helped FC Barcelona win the U18 Adidas Next Generation Tournament championship in May, averaging 16.2 factors, 6.5 rebounds and 3.2 assists in six video games and accumulating 20 factors and 10 rebounds in the finals against Real Madrid.

This month, Kusturica averaged a team-leading 24.6 factors, 6.9 rebounds and 2.7 assists in seven video games for Serbia at the FIBA U17 World Cup in Istanbul, Turkey, taking pictures 46.8% from the sector and 72.9% from the free-throw line, including a team-high 37 factors in Serbia’s loss to the U.S. in Sunday’s gold-medal recreation.

He was named the event’s best defensive participant and earned all-star honors after main his staff with 16 steals and 12 blocks.

Competing in Spain’s U22 league during the 2025-26 season, Kusturica averaged 13.5 factors, 7.5 rebounds and 1.9 assists in 19 video games and scored in double digits 16 instances.

Last yr, Kusturica was named the most precious participant of the FIBA U16 EuroBasket event in Tbilisi, Georgia, after averaging 20 factors, 7.7 rebounds and 3.4 assists per recreation.

He led Serbia to its first U16 EuroBasket title since 2007, contributing 18 factors, 14 rebounds, eight assists and 5 steals in a 99-86 victory over Lithuania in the finals.

One particular person clearly influential in UCLA’s recruitment was Yogi Jovanovic, UCLA’s director of worldwide recruiting and an assistant coach. Like Kusturica, Jovanovic is Serbian and has been coach of the nation’s U20 national staff and is on monitor to be an assistant coach for Serbia’s Olympic staff during the 2028 Games in Los Angeles.

Grinvalds also signed a grant-in-aid settlement. The 6-7 forward competed for Real Madrid in Spain’s Liga ACB.

Two months in the past at the U18 Adidas Next Generation Tournament in Greece, the 18-year-old averaged 12 factors, 5.3 rebounds and 1.3 assists in six video games with Real Madrid.

“Gunars can really shoot the ball at an elite level,” Cronin said. “We like that he has good size at his position. Gunars is interested in his development and continued improvement as a player. We believe he is a great fit here at UCLA as he’s an excellent student and a very hard worker.”