As great as Michael Malone has been with UNC out on the recruiting trail, don't forget that there's still work to be done to fully finalize the 2026-27 roster. With that, surprising news came in that North Carolina has been in contact with Serbian small forward Nikola Kusturica. We'll admit, this caught us a bit off guard.
Terrence Brown making it rain at the Dean Dome will have UNC fans fired up
The thought of Malone pulling off another major splash overseas sure sounds nice. With that said, let's be realistic here. Per Jack Pilgrim, the standout is looking for a two-year deal, and he's no question going to be looking at a pretty penny NIL wise. With Kentucky charging hard, and Mark Pope being desperate to build a winner, chances are the Wildcats will be ready to offer the kind of dough Kusturica might be looking for.
NEW: Serbian SF Nikola Kusturica has been receiving recent interest from Kentucky, per @JackPilgrimKSR
— Dylan (@BigBlueDylan) June 12, 2026
Gonzaga, UCLA, Arizona, Duke, Louisville, North Carolina, are other schools who’ve reached out with talks of a 2-year deal most likely.
Gonzaga seems to be the clear favorite… pic.twitter.com/51a4RrCtvk
UNC and Michael Malone have reportedly shown interest in Serbian playmaker Nikola Kusturica
On the surface, yeah, we'd love for Kusturica, a young playmaker for FC Barcelona, to give the Tar Heels a serious look. At this point of the recruiting efforts, however, we've also got to be a bit careful to not get excited. If he's looking for serious coin, then Malone and North Carolina simply are not going to be the ones to give it to him.
Despite that, a player we've got our eyes on is no question Oregon guard Wei Lin. While Lin isn't a big-name player by any means, he's got professional experience from his playing days in China. Last season for Oregon, his lone campaign in Eugene, he averaged 6.6 points per game. He was also known for being a quality passer.
The thing with Lin too is that he would not be asked to come in and be a starter. Nope, he'd fill the role of backup point guard, ready to give Terrence Brown a breather whenever he needs it. For now, the expected starting five for North Carolina will feature Brown, Matt Able, Neoklis Avdalas, Jarin Stevenson, and Alexandros Samodurov.
Adding a player of Lin's abilities for depth purposes would still be a major win for Malone, especially with the majority of his transfer portal work in the rearview mirror. From our chair, prioritizing getting things done with Lin would be a smarter move instead of potentially chasing a player like Kusturica. That's just us, though.
You never know - Malone could surprise us all and work his magic to sell Kusturica on all things North Carolina. The brand still means a lot to plenty of people, as no one can argue with the fact that UNC is one of the best blue blood programs out there. The six national championships for men's hoops simply can't be ignored.
Again, though, bringing in Kusturica feels like a pipe dream, and it's something Malone shouldn't spend too much time on. It won't be a surprise if Pope ends up getting this recruitment wrapped up pretty dang quickly. And if that does happen, the UNC faithful should not be surprised or disappointed by things. It won't be a loss at all for Carolina.
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