CHAMPAIGN, Ill. (WCIA) – Illinois men’s basketball has gone global.
Following the selection of Canadian Will Riley and Lithuanian Kasparas Jakucionis in the first round of the 2025 NBA Draft from Illinois, the international connections within the team have only deepened.
Illinois welcomes back Croatian forward Tomislav Ivisic and has added four new European players. Tomislav’s twin, Zvonimir, has transferred from Arkansas. Greek player Andrej Stojakovic moved to Illinois from California. Joining them is Serbian point guard Mihailo Petrovic, who will experience his first college basketball season at Illinois alongside Montenegro native David Mirkovic.
“We made a deal to not speak out language on the court because other guys don’t understand us,” Tomislav Ivisic said.
However, that deal might be off the table if the ‘Balkan Five’ all wind up on the court together.
“No, we’re speaking Serbian,” Mirkovic said of that scenario.
Stojakovic, having grown up in California, faces less of a cultural adjustment. Zvonimir Ivisic is entering his third year in the United States, while Tomislav is in his second. Both Petrovic and Mirkovic, as newcomers, might still be adapting to their new environment.
“Sometimes I speak Serbian,” Mirkovic admitted. “It’s natural for me. I haven’t completely adjusted to speaking English on the court, especially when I’m tired. I strive to communicate in English as much as possible. Often, it’s just me, Tomi, and three Americans on the court. Between Tomi and me, we speak Serbian, but we switch to English for everyone else.”
Mirkovic says he learned English at a young age, but making it his go-to in the heat of battle on the court is a change of pace.
Petrovic is already American in at least one way.
“I like Chipotle,” he said. “Burrito with chicken.”
