Arkansas basketball lands a massive European center
John Calipari’s basketball team is getting stronger today. According to reports, the Razorbacks have landed center Elmir Dzafic. ESPN analyst Jonathan Givony broke the news on X (formerly Twitter) after Dzafic’s agent, Misko Raznatovic, told the sports media giant about the Bosnian’s decision. Dzafic will be available to play for the 2025-26 season.
Arkansas lands center Elmir Dzafic
At 7-foot-1, Dzafic is the third overseas player to join the Hogs and the second European in two years, with Zvonimir Ivisic following Calipari from Kentucky last season and Lebanese national Karim Rtail committing in March.
In 2023, Dzafic played in eight games for the FIBA U18 Bosnia and Herzegovina national team, recording 13.1 points, 10 rebounds, and 1.5 assists per game. However, his minutes dropped significantly when he joined Bosna Visit Sarajevo. This last season, Dzafic only played 7.1 minutes a game. Still, he averaged 2.4 points—knocking down shots at a 66.7 percent clip—and 1.3 boards a game.
He’ll join a talented yet light-in-depth frontcourt at Arkansas. After Ivisic left to join his brother at Illinois, Malique Ewin, Nick Pringle, Trevon Brazile, and the aforementioned Rtail are the only players over 6-foot-6. Last season, the Razorbacks made do with Brazile, Jonas Aidoo, Adou Thiero, and Ivisic. But at times, especially when the bigs got in foul trouble, the threat of them all fouling out significantly affected how they played defense. With Dzafic on the bench, the frontcourt can play more freely in those situations.
