LEXINGTON — As soon as Zvonimir Ivisic joined Kentucky basketball's 2023-24 roster, the speculation ramped up. What might the towering Croatian bring to the table from Day 1 with the Wildcats?

The 20-year-old Ivisic, a 7-foot-2 forward who committed to UK on Aug. 1, has put his name into the last two NBA drafts. While he withdrew before the international deadline both years, his ability to shoot off the dribble from distance, especially given his height, leaves NBA talent evaluators salivating.

Still, Sam Vecenie said it's best to keep realistic expectations for Ivisic this next season.

"I think the view of Ivisic is that he's a little more of a 2025 draft prospect as opposed to 2024," said Vecenie, who covers college and pro basketball as well as the NBA draft for The Athletic. "He's much more (about) potential right now. But undeniably, Kentucky and John Calipari and this coaching staff is showcasing a willingness to get creative in the recruiting market. … And going out and getting a guy this talented, it's hard to overstate how impressive I think it is as an overall recruiting coup by Calipari and this staff."

Ivisiv averaged just 3.9 points and 2.4 rebounds during the 2022-23 season for SC Derby in the ABA League — the top league of teams from the former Yugoslavia (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and Slovenia). The numbers don't jump off the page, but he's still developing.

"His production has not been quite as strong as what you would think or hope for from a potential first-round pick," Vecenie said. "And that's fine. Everybody runs their own race, right?"

How many minutes Ivisic sees at UK hinges upon two factors: how quickly the Wildcats' other two big men, sophomore Ugonna Onyenso and freshman Aaron Bradshaw, recover from injuries, and whether Ivisic can shore up some of the holes in his own game.

One area where he's struggled is setting screens. And while he averaged one block per game, good for fifth last season in the ABA, Vecenie said those numbers don't tell the whole story.

"He is somebody who will have to improve in regard to contesting without fouling and not being as willing to just swat at the ball or try and bring his hands forward," Vecenie said. "He needs to improve his overall principles of verticality and just jumping straight up and down and letting his length be the deterrent, as opposed to letting his action as a swatter be the deterrent."

Eschewing dogged, textbook defense to chase blocks contributed to Ivisic's sky-high foul rate. The past two seasons with SC Derby, he's averaged 7.2 fouls per 36 minutes — including a whopping 8.7 in 2022-23.

"For somebody who has been a very foul-prone player, just to get on the court and stay on the court in college basketball — where there's a little bit less space in half-court settings and there's a little bit of college officials being very willing to call fouls on you — will be (crucial)," Vecenie said. "But I think it's certainly something he'll improve throughout the course of the year, because it'll be such an important piece of what Kentucky asks him to do."

Ideally, UK can harness Ivisic's ability by letting him do what he does best: roam the perimeter on offense and fire at will behind the 3-point line. That strategy helped UK win gold at the GLOBL JAM preseason tournament last month in Toronto, where the Wildcats showcased crisp ball movement and averaged nearly 30 3-point attempts per game.

"It would be very smart, at the very least in lineups where Ivisic is on the court, to give him the freedom to pick and pop," Vecenie said. "Maybe if Justin Edwards is on the court, you have Justin Edwards go up and screen instead of Zvonimir, and Zvonimir is spacing in the corners, spacing on the wing. There are a lot of different ways that you could utilize Ivisic's spacing ability in a modern offense and I think the signs that we saw from Kentucky at GLOBL JAM were very positive."

While he's far from a finished product, Vecenie noted the majority of Ivisic's issues are "fundamentally based" and fixable with time. There aren't concerns about his shooting or ballhandling.

"With him, he just needs to become a more disciplined player," Vecenie said. "I think discipline is something you can learn. I think that as you continue to get reps, you can improve your overall feel for the game. Ivisic, he has the tools to do it. He just needs to really hone in on being a strong vertical rim protector and shot contester, needs to become a better screen setter, needs to become better in ball-screen defense — these are things that Kentucky's coaching staff will work with him on.

"And if the development goes right over the next year, there's every possibility that he can turn into a first rounder."

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Reach Kentucky men’s basketball and football reporter Ryan Black at rblack@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter at @RyanABlack.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Kentucky basketball roster: Zvonimir Ivisic gives UK size and shooting