LSU Men's Basketball Lands Yet Another International Commitment

LSU's global brand is growing as Will Wade and the men's basketball staff land yet another international commitment.

Michael Ruzic is a Croatian 19-year-old power forward/center who will be joining the Tigers after spending three years with Joventut of Spain's Liga Endesa.

The seven-foot-tall Ruzic has played 25 games this season with Joventut, where he has scored 6.5 points per game and 3.8 rebounds per game. He joins an already towering lineup of LSU Tigers.

He is Wade's third international commit, following center Marcio Santos and forward Saliou Niang. The class also consists of four transfers: shooting guard Abdi Bashir Jr. from Kansas State, forward Mouhamed Dioubate from Kentucky, guard Austin Nunez from UTSA and point guard Divine Ugochukwu from Michigan State.

What Ruzic brings to LSU

LSU Tigers head coach Will Wade against the Missouri Tigers during the second half at Amalie Arena. | Kim Klement-Imagn Images

Ruzic, who turns 20 on Oct. 4, is the youngest member of the LSU class so far. He still brings plenty of experience, as Juventut also competed in EuroCup, a league which is a step below the EuroLeague that Santos played in.

He brings a great field goal percentage, sinking 54.7% of his shots this past season. Ruzic doesn't attempt many 3-pointers, but did have a 40.7% rate from beyond the arc in 2025-26.

While he will bounce between power forward and center, Ruzic is capable of playing well anywhere on the court. He doesn't record many assists because he helps make plays happen himself, whether putting up a shot, grabbing a rebound or setting on-ball screens.

Ruzic is going to be a killer in transition. His ability to hit shots from deep or use his speed to beat defenders will have him prime to score and help LSU get on big runs. He is an extremely versatile ball player.

He will have to improve his assists numbers to help LSU win, but his overall skills don't leave any room for doubt about his ability to adapt to this new LSU team.

Ruzic offers plenty of professional experience in a solid league, and will be able to offer the same to a mature LSU team. The amount of LSU commits that possess professional experience in European leagues will be able to help each of them and in turn challenge the American transfers.

He participated in the 2025 NBA Draft combine, but eventually withdrew his name and remained in Spain. But he knows what scouts are looking for and how to improve his game to play in the NBA.

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