The Iowa State Cyclones men’s basketball roster is going to look a lot different during the 2026-27 season than it did when the 2025-26 campaign came to a close.
Three starters from the team, Tamin Lipsey, Joshua Jefferson and Milan Momcilovic, and key reserve Nate Heise are all moving on. Momcilovic is the only one who had eligibility remaining who opted to move on from the team.
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He put his name into the 2026 NBA Draft, and shortly after that, also entered the transfer portal. It wasn’t an easy decision to make, but it was the right move for both sides, so Momcilovic could focus on becoming a pro and the Cyclones could move forward with reshaping their roster.
For now, Momcilovic is going through the draft process to see what his range may be. If he receives the kind of feedback he is hoping for, he will remain in the draft pool. Should that not happen, he will return to the collegiate ranks, with the Kentucky Wildcats being a potential suitor.
Milan Momcilovic offers opinion on Kentucky Wildcats
Mar 20, 2025; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Iowa State Cyclones forward Milan Momcilovic speaks during an NCAA Tournament First Round Practice press conference at Fiserv Forum. | Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images
He has never met with head coach Mark Pope, but the style of play he deployed with the BYU Cougars that has carried over to Kentucky, with an emphasis on 3-point shooting, is one that the former Iowa State star would fit into seamlessly.
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“I think Kentucky would be a good fit,” Momcilovic told the Herald-Leader. “I obviously went against Pope at BYU his first year (in the Big 12), and I loved how his team played. I think we went 1-1 against them, but they killed us at their place, because they fly the ball up the court and shoot 3s. I really like the way they play.”
Shooting 3-pointers is the strength of Momcilovic’s game. He led the country with 136 3-pointers made this past season and was also the most accurate shooter, knocking down 48.7% of his attempts from long range. No one has ever led the nation in both categories in the same season.
After seeing Pope’s team in action during BYU’s first year in the Big 12, Momcilovic got an up-close look at them again in the 2026 NCAA Tournament. In the Round of 32, the Cyclones ran the Wildcats off the court, winning 82-63.
From that matchup and watching tape on Kentucky to prep, Momcilovic came away feeling the roster wasn’t a great fit for the style of play Pope wanted to use, and he would help change that.
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“And obviously Kentucky last year, he didn’t have enough shooters around him to really coach, I feel like, the way he wanted. But I think – if I were to choose Kentucky – that would be a good fit for me. I feel like I’d be a great player for him, and he’d be a good coach for me,” the sharpshooter added.
It will be interesting to see how things unfold over the next few weeks. Momcilovic will have until May 27 to withdraw from the 2026 NBA Draft and maintain eligibility for the 2026-27 collegiate season.
This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/iowa-state as Milan Momcilovic Offers Honest Opinion on Kentucky Basketball.
