After Rick Barnes dominated the offseason by completely rebuilding Tennessee’s roster from the ground up, the Vols are considered one of the favorites to win the SEC next year, sitting just behind Florida, the preseason No. 1 team in the nation and the current national title favorite. That said, the SEC just got tougher with the latest news coming out of Lexington.
Dick Vitale’s latest comments about Kentucky basketball is music to Vols fans’ ears
247Sports' Travis Branham, one of the top college basketball recruiting analysts in the sport, has logged a prediction for Kentucky to land Nikola Kusturica, a 6-foot-7 wing from Serbia who is currently playing in Spain for FC Barcelona. This is a big development for the SEC.
NEW: 247sports Recruiting Analyst Travis Branham has logged a prediction for Kentucky to land Nikola Kusturica, a projected top-5 pick in the 2028 NBA Draft.
— Casey (@BleedBlueCasey) June 17, 2026
Game-changing. pic.twitter.com/ZAdHfMD6qt
Kentucky could now be a threat to Tennessee if they land Nicola Kusturica
Mark Pope had a very slow start to the offseason. The Wildcats missed out on pretty much every big-name prospect they targeted. The most notable was a major swing-and-miss with Tyran Stokes, who is projected to be a top pick in next year’s NBA Draft. It was a real eye-opening moment for Kentucky fans, as it showed they are no longer the royalty of college basketball recruiting.
However, Pope has begun to salvage together a nice team, as he recently added Milan Momcilovic from Iowa State after he withdrew from the NBA Draft and transferred to Kentucky. Momcilovic was one of the best shooters in the nation last year and should fit perfectly in Pope’s system. Now, with Kentucky likely landing Kusturica as well, Tennessee needs to keep an eye on the Cats because they have built a really strong foundation. That's no small thing.
Keep an eye on Kentucky, because Kusturica should fit well in Pope’s system with his all-around game. He is still developing as a shooter, knocking down 31% of his three-point attempts during the U16 FIBA Tournament. However, he posted impressive numbers, averaging 20 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 3.4 assists while also showcasing his two-way ability. He can play with the pace and space that Pope likes, but he will do his work more in isolation rather than catching and shooting from beyond the arc. Not to mention, Serbia lost only one game in the tournament, a close contest against Spain, thanks in large part to Kusturica putting the team on his back.
Pairing him with Momcilovic should make Kentucky very tough to beat in terms of length. The Wildcats have a lot of size and length on the wings, but on the bright side, Tennessee does too. If there’s one thing this Tennessee team has, it’s shot creators and playmakers. The Vols should be able to match up well and avoid being overwhelmed by Kentucky’s length.
I hate seeing Kentucky get better, but in the Pope era they’ve consistently underdelivered, which is what you have to hope for again this season. That said, this roster is unfortunately shaping up pretty well, and if it really does click, winning the SEC just got significantly harder for the Vols.
Add us as a preferred source on Google