Arkansas HC John Calipari lands first player from Kentucky ahead of 2024 college basketball season

On April 9, former Kentucky coach John Calipari stepped down after 15 years with the Wildcats. The very next day, the Arkansas Razorbacks officially announced Calipari as their new head coach. Within a week of this announcement, Arkansas signed former Kentucky 7′ 2″ center Zvonimir Ivisic, who had spent one season with the Wildcats.

Ivisic was the first player to follow Calipari to Arkansas, and Kentucky gained a great addition ahead of the 2024 college basketball season.

The Razorbacks tweeted, “[Zvonimir Ivisic] YOU are an Arkansas Razorback,” to which Calipari reacted and wrote:

“Big Z!! I’m so excited to see how good he can become when he finally gets a full summer and preseason to practice with our team.”

Ivisic contributed big minutes to Kentucky, scoring an average of 5.5 points per game while shooting an impressive 57.7% from all areas of the court. Additionally, he grabbed 3.3 rebounds and blocked 1.3 shots per game in the 15 games he played for the team.

Zvonimir Ivisic became the initial Wildcat to enter the transfer portal once Mark Pope took over as the new coach, replacing Calipari.

John Calipari had led the Wildcats to a national championship in 2012 and had an overall record of 410-123 during his time in Lexington.

John Calipari supports Zvonimir Ivisic's right to compete

Former head coach John Calipari of the Kentucky Wildcats

Zvonimir Ivisic, who plays center, had a tough time getting cleared to play for Kentucky due to NCAA eligibility issues. Coach John Calipari supported him throughout the process.

Recently, the new Razorbacks head coach criticized the NCAA for their stance on Ivisic's eligibility. Calipari said he deserved a chance to play.

“It’s not fair. For him to go through what he did to get into school for two months, what he’s doing academically, and how he is as a teammate. Every day he walks in, he says, ‘Hey, Coach Cal!’ Yesterday, or two days ago, I said to him, you know, I just want you to know I feel bad because I don’t like how you were treated from the beginning to now,” Calipari said [h/t Clutch Points].

“He was a 19-year-old, 20, playing amateur basketball over there,” Calipari added. “They can make it however they want to make it. ‘But, well, what about this? What about that?’ I get it. I get it. But, you know, he’s a great kid that deserves it.”

Coach Cal stepped into the role previously held by Eric Musselman at Arkansas, while Musselman transitioned to become the head coach at USC. Per reports, John Calipari agreed to a five-year contract with an annual salary starting at $7 million.