Aaron Bradshaw and Zvonimir Ivisic are best friends: "It's like having a 7-foot child with you at all times."

They’ve known each other for all of two months, but Aaron Bradshaw and Zvonimir Ivisic have quickly become best friends. You already know about “The 7-Footers” group chat featuring Bradshaw, Ivisic and Ugonna Onyenso — “If you’re not 7-foot and over, you can’t get in. Sorry.” Maybe it’s their unique circumstances and the adversities they’ve both had to overcome, but the relationship AB and Big Z have developed almost immediately is just different.

Bradshaw can’t even describe it, but he knows it has something to do with Ivisic’s humor and goofy personality. He just can’t stop laughing when the 7-foot-2 big man out of Croatia is around.

“Z, it’s like having a 7-foot child with you at all times,” Bradshaw said Thursday. “Z is probably the funniest person on the team, and he cares a lot. It’s like, he’s one of my closest friends. I’m not even going to lie to you, he’s one of my closest friends. Me and him talk about playing together, being like a family.”

You may see the two sitting together on the bench every game, giggling like school kids hoping to avoid getting caught by the teacher. Ivisic was seen pinching Bradshaw’s side over and over during the Miami win, then shared the TV footage with his buddy as if he couldn’t feel it happening in real time.

“I saw that on Twitter,” Bradshaw said. “I texted him — he actually sent it to me, like, ‘Bro look!’ I’m like, ‘Yes, that’s you.'”

What do you think Ivisic and Bradshaw are saying to each other? pic.twitter.com/4Vb34aVO4o

— satcheluk ☮️ (@satcheluk) November 29, 2023

One is from New Jersey, the other is from Croatia — clear language and culture differences. But it hasn’t stopped them from becoming brothers.

“It helped (having Ivisic early in the season),” Bradshaw said. “Off the court, too, we always just chill, play (video) games, talk on the game, get food. We just have that brother bond. … (His immaturity) is just his personality. He’s a really funny, really generous person. You can’t ask for a better 7-footer. He’s the perfect 7-footer. He plays basketball, he’s funny, does everything.”

Bradshaw has gone out of his way to help him adapt to American culture — hopefully not a contributing factor to Ivisic’s food poisoning back in November. But his taste in music is evolving, at least.

“I put him on some Lil Durk. He’s taken to it quickly, he’s starting to know more songs than me now,” Bradshaw said. “He has a favorite song, it’s by Lil Baby. ‘Freestyle.’ He was listening to G Herbo, and I was like, ‘Bro, what? How do you know who G Herbo is?’ I’m like, ‘OK, I got you.'”

And Ivisic is helping Bradshaw with different things, too. He’s got a whole different world of basketball to teach.

“He competes. Croatia doesn’t have the same rules as over here, so the things he does out there, I can learn from,” Bradshaw said of Ivisic. “On the screen, he rolls to the basket differently than we do here. I’m just taking little stuff like that, asking him questions about blocking shots. He’s a really good player.”

However they can help each other, they try. That’s what best friends and brothers do.

“I’m just trying to give what I’ve got to him and he’s trying to give what he’s got to me, basically.”