Kentucky basketball officially lost a key recruiting battle on Thursday morning.
According to college basketball insider Travis Branham, international wing Nikola Kusturica has committed to UCLA. Kentucky was among the top programs making a push for Kusturica in advance of his move to the United States, but he has ultimately decided to sign with the Bruins.
NEWS: International star wing Nikola Kusturica has committed to UCLA, a source tells @247Sports. Story: t.co/0gV4WU5uED pic.twitter.com/fhySyTyq6X
— Travis Branham (@TravisBranham_) July 9, 2026As Kentucky Sports Radio’s Jack Pilgrim noted, it’s been expected in recent days that Kusturica would head to UCLA rather than play for the Wildcats. Still, this represents another high-profile loss for Mark Pope and his staff on the recruiting trail.
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Kusturica played for FC Barcelona this past season. The Serbian wing earned 4-star status in the class of 2026. He’s currently the No. 56 overall player and the No. 21 small forward in the nation for this cycle, per 247Sports Composite rankings. He’s also considered to be the No. 1 prospect from Spain.
Kusturica recently turned 17 years old and won’t be eligible to enter the 2027 NBA Draft. That means he’s set to play at least 2 seasons of college basketball before a potential move to the NBA.
Kentucky still has one open scholarship that it could fill later this offseason in advance of the 2026-27 campaign.
Prediction Markets 2027 College Basketball Champion Learn more about Prediction Markets Kalshi Duke 12% Illinois 8% UConn 8% Michigan 5% Tennessee 5% Arkansas 4% Alabama 4% St. John's 2% Villanova 1% PredictKentucky basketball target commits to Big Ten program Saturday Down South.
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