andrej stojakovic: Insider claims Dan Hurley's UConn, Mark Pope's Kentucky among teams vying for Andrej Stojakovic commitment

Insider claims Dan Hurley's UConn, Mark Pope's Kentucky among teams vying for Andrej Stojakovic commitment

NCAA Basketball: ACC Conference Tournament First Round - Virginia Tech vs California - Source: Imagn — Andrej Stojakovic has caught the attentionof some of the top programs in the nation (Source: Imagn)

Andrej Stojakovic's recruiting trail is heating up. According to 247 Sports' Travis Branham, the former California Golden Bear is drawing interest from at least half a dozen teams.

Branham mentioned on X/Twitter that the wing was set to make his first visit to Illinois, posting an update on other schools interested in the Cal transfer.

"Andrej Stojakovic has completed a Zoom with USC and has been in steady contact with Kentucky, a source told @247Sports," Branham said. "Others showing interest include North Carolina, Florida, Clemson, LSU, Cincinnati, UConn and more. A return to California is also still in consideration."

Expand Tweet

While North Carolina, USC and Kentucky's interest comes as no surprise since they've pursued Stojakovic in the past, there is plenty of interest from schools all over the country for the small forward, including the last three national championship teams: Dan Hurley's UConn Huskies and Todd Golden's Florida Gators.

Stojakovic is coming off a breakout sophomore season in which he averaged 17.9 points while shooting 42.7% from the field. He also dished out 1.8 assists per game.

The Carmichael, California native also earned All-ACC honorable mention for his performance last season. 247 Sports has him ranked as the No. 7 small forward and No. 34 prospect overall.

Before transferring to Cal last season, Stojakovic named North Carolina and Kentucky as his other finalists. With Mark Pope and Hubert Davis still leading both schools, they figure to once again be in the mix to land the California player.

Could Illinois secure Andrej Stojakovic on Tuesday?

Andrej Stojakovic is set to visit Illinois on Tuesday. Having the first visit is an advantage, as coach Brad Underwood will have a chance to sign the talented small forward before he gets to visit other schools.

While Stojakovic is only a 31.8% 3-point shooter, the Fighting Illini have had success with European players recently, and will have Croatian brothers Tomislav and Zvonimir Ivisic on the court this season. Lithuania's Kasparas Jakucionis had a successful season in Champaign last season.

Expand Tweet

The 6-foot-7, 205-pound wing is the son of Croatian former NBA player Peja Stojakovic. While it's unclear if Peja has any weight on his son's decision, he could consider that going to a program with European-style players could help Andrej's development.

While his touch from beyond the arc could improve, Andrej Stojakovic is a good mid-range shooter, which could be a fit for Underwood's perimeter offense. He may find an advantage under the system by not having to create as many shots for himself as he did back in Berkeley.

About the author

Allan Wolburg Robles is a College Sports journalist at Sportskeeda with over 17 years of experience in the field writing for publications including Reforma, Yahoo! OddsShark and Apuesta. Allan studied Communications at Anáhuac University, where he learned what would become the basis of a trade that was already a dream of his before starting college.

His favorite team is Army West Point as when he was young, Allan lived in West Point for a couple of years, went to pretty much every home game, a couple of Army-Navy games and even got to meet some of the players.

Allan's favorite players of all time include Tommie Frazier, who was unbelievable during the Nebraska dynasty of the early 90's. Tim Tebow was also a favorite, mainly because of his leadership skills, although he was also awesome on the football field. As a fan of defensive football, (or what's left of it), Sean Taylor could take over a game for Miami.

Allan has always considered himself a student of the game more than a fan of it. So the historical part and evolution of the game, as well as the ins and outs of what happens on the field, and being able to put it into words for the audience, are his biggest strengths.

Besides sports, Allan enjoys reading books, watching movies and spending time with his dogs.

Know More

Dawn Staley, Geno Auriemma, or Kim Mulkey - who is NCAAW's highest-paid coach? Find out here

Edited by Veer Badani