Mark Pope’s latest European recruit, Andrija Jelavic’s jersey number gives nod to Kentucky great Rajon Rondo

Kentucky Wildcats commit Andrija Jelavic is steadily preparing for his first year of college basketball in the 2025-26 season. On April 12, the Mega Superbet product committed to play for Mark Pope's team.

During an interview with @BigBlueDylan on X posted on Sunday, one of the things that Jelavic was asked was what his jersey number would be.

"I will continue to be number four," he revealed.

The No. 4 jersey was previously donned by Kentucky great Rajon Rondo, who played for the Wildcats from 2004 to 2006. He was named to the SEC All-Freshman Team. In the NBA, Rando won two championships with the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers.

As Andrija Jelavic prepares for his college debut, he was asked about his offseason preparations.

"I will definitely work on my shooting to be even better as well on my handles. But, I will also work a lot on my physicality in the gym," he said.

Andrija Jelavic then shared what he is most looking forward to in playing collegiate hoops for Kentucky.

"I am most looking forward to playing home games in our arena and all the fans! And of course, playing in March Madness and going all the way to the championship," Jelavic said.

Mark Pope recalls his first phone call with Andrija Jelavic

During a media availability on Wednesday, Kentucky Wildcats coach Mark Pope was asked about Andrija Jelavic and what the recruitment process was like. Among the significant things that Pope shared was what he found out about Jelavic right from their first call.

"My first FaceTime conversation with him was actually beautiful. I mean from the first few minutes talking, I was like, 'Wow, this kid is really special. He loves the game of basketball. He loves to hoop. He wants to hoop all the time. He's in an environment where he's doing two practices a day everyday for his entire life," Pope shared. (0:33)

"So, that's kind of the background he's come from. He's with a really good organization that we know the people surrounding that organization really well," he continued.

In the 2024-25 season, during Pope's first year with the Wildcats, the team finished with an overall record of 24-12 and 10-8 in SEC play.