Is Tomislav Ivisic Becoming a Guard? How He's Thriving in New Role at Illinois

In Tomislav Ivisic’s first season at Illinois, his skill set was immediately apparent: At 7-foot-1, he was a gifted shooter with the ability to post up and make plays for himself or his teammates. How that all manifested itself – and his role – also was cemented fairly quickly.

Ivisic was half of the dynamic ball-screen action that the Illini channeled its offense through, along with one-and-done guard Kasparas Jakucionis. Illinois would also, depending on the matchup, feed Ivisic in the high post – where he was notably excellent at hitting cutters – or get him the rock down low on the block.

Heading into the 2025-26 campaign, with Jakucionis out of the fold, the general assumption was that Ivisic would see an uptick in his usage rate, with the Illini seeking out their big man at an even higher clip and running the majority of their offense through him.

Why Tomislav Ivisic was initially struggling in the 2025-26 campaign

What no one predicted – aside from some of the Illini themselves (albeit certainly not to this extent) – was the emergence of freshman guard Keaton Wagler and freshman big David Mirkovic. More expected, but also robust, were the contributions from another pair of standouts in guard Kylan Boswell and wing Andrej Stojakovic.

All of the firepower and depth has been greatly beneficial to the Illini as a squad, but for the majority of the season, it had left Ivisic with a poorly defined (and often less central) role. How did he fit with this squad? Was he a glorified spot-up shooter? Was he simply another body to set sturdy screens? Was he a dump-down option in the post as a last resort? Or was Ivisic still the jack-of-all trades big man who just so happened to be a master marksman as well?

Throughout the first half of the season, it felt like he played all of those roles at times, but also none of them steadily. It was evident in his play – including his often-uninspired defense – that he hardly had a clue what the answer was himself.

How Tomislav Ivisic has blossomed in his unique role at Illinois

But over the past few weeks, that has changed. Whether Boswell or Stojakovic have been active, neither or both, it hasn’t mattered. Ivisic has found his niche – and he has embraced it.

Over the past six games, the only game in which Ivisic hasn’t cracked double-digit scoring was the 40-point victory over Northwestern – a contest that saw him play just 24 minutes. In that same stretch, Ivisic is shooting 29-for-52 (55.8 percent) from the field.

Despite his size, Ivisic has turned into a guard of sorts. He plays the role of an off-ball player to perfection. Ivisic takes his open looks from deep, has blossomed as a cutter and he’s even driving closeouts.

Tomislav Ivisic slams it down 💪 @IlliniMBB

📺: @BigTenNetwork pic.twitter.com/keXZXlSr7i
— Big Ten Men's Basketball (@B1GMBBall) February 19, 2026

Yet he’s still a superb screen setter, with the ability to roll, and remains a dominant force with his back to the basket – a scenario the Illini seem to be engineering more often for him lately.

“He’s gone from a guy that was primarily in every ball screen last year to, now, he’s one of two or three guys that are in them,” Underwood said Friday. “Playing in space a little more. His shooting is truly a weapon. But what’s helped now is kind of his playmaking. His ability to put it on the floor. His ability to cut. Made a couple really nice cuts.

“He’s starting to understand and think a little more like a perimeter guy, to be honest, in what those reads are. So he’s really grown his game and he’s really starting to get comfortable in those roles.”

Underwood – and nearly every coach – harps on the importance of role identification. A team may have supremely gifted players across the board, but if players don’t know their role, a squad can’t reach its ceiling.

At this point of the campaign, it appears as though every Illini player in the rotation doesn’t just know his role – but is also comfortable within it. And more than being merely willing to play that role to the best of their ability, they are eager to.