At least one NBA Mock Draft already has Zvonimir Ivisic as a projected lottery pick

Well, that certainly didn’t take long…

It only took one game for Kentucky’s 7-foot-2 freshman center, Zvonimir Ivisic, to work his way into at least one NBA Mock Draft. In fact, he’s already being projected as a potential lottery pick.

On Monday afternoon over at Yahoo! Sports, draft analyst Krysten Peek released her 2024 NBA Mock Draft 4.0. The usual names were listed at the top: Alex Sarr, Zaccharie Risacher, Ron Holland, Ja’Kobe Walter, etc. But a name we didn’t expect to see sitting inside the Top 10 was none other than Ivisic, who made his first appearance in the mock at No. 9 to the Atlanta Hawks.

“Ivišić has only logged 16 minutes for Kentucky and played in his first game Saturday after finally being cleared by the NCAA,” Peek wrote. “He was by far the most exciting player on the court, scoring 13 points and adding five rebounds, three blocks, two assists and two steals in a win over Georgia. He moves extremely well at 7-2 and threw one pass behind his back to a teammate for a corner 3, went 3-of-4 from behind the arc and is a tremendous rim protector. Ivišić could continue to rise in the lottery and solidify himself as a top-five pick.”

Updated 2024 NBA mock draft for @YahooSports: Kentucky's Zvonimir Ivišić enters the lottery after an impressive first game. Top 5:
1. Cody Williams
2. Alex Sarr
3. Zaccharie Risacher
4. Ja'Kobe Walter
5. Ron Holland
Full first round ⬇️https://t.co/J43JxFBSM3

— Krysten Peek (@krystenpeek) January 22, 2024

Ivisic took the basketball world by storm when he made his long-awaited debut for the Kentucky Wildcats against Georgia on Saturday. He wasn’t even cleared by the NCAA until hours before tipoff, but he was the star of the show from the moment he stepped on the Rupp Arena floor.

Again, it was only one game, but Ivisic is catching the eyes of draft analysts everywhere.

Ivisic wasn’t even the only Wildcat to make Peek’s updated mock draft, either. She mentioned two other Kentucky players as well, slotting both of them near Ivisic inside the lottery.

Peek also projects freshman guards Rob Dillingham (No. 7; San Antonio Spurs) and Reed Sheppard (No. 11; Oklahoma City Thunder) as potential top 14 picks in the 2024 Draft that will take place this summer.