After crashing out in the second round of the 2026 March Madness earlier this year, the UCLA Bruins would like to better their record in the upcoming season. So far, head coach Mick Cronin has signed two Class of 2026 prospects who will feature for the Los Angeles-based program later this campaign.
However, it looks like the Bruins are all set to splurge the big bucks to add a foreign prodigy to their ranks. As per a Saturday report from Eurohoops, 17-year-old Serbian talent Nikola Kusturica, a 6-foot-7 small forward, is slated to leave FC Barcelona to join Mick Cronin’s team in the upcoming college basketball campaign.
A reported sum of $12 million in NIL is what the UCLA Bruins are apparently offering Kusturica to acquire his services over the next two seasons.
This news has naturally garnered a lot of chatter online, with fans criticizing the NCAA and the college basketball circuit as a whole over this potential record transfer.
While it remains to be seen if the Kusturica-UCLA deal goes through, it’s safe to say a lucrative contract like this could very well change the course of the collegiate basketball pay structure in the days to come.
Philon, Floyd Headline UCLA’s Class of 2026 Recruits
With the UCLA Bruins set to tip off their 2026-27 regular season later this November, two Class of 2026 prospects have bolstered an already stacked roster.
Standing at 6-foot-8 and 185 pounds, four-star PF Joe Philon currently occupies the eighth spot on ESPN SC Next’s top 100 power forwards’ list with an overall grade rating of 87.
Meanwhile, another towering 6-9 prospect, C. Javonte Floyd, could very well become a key starter for head coach Mick Cronin in the upcoming campaign.
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