Reading · Rob Gray's Area

Former Iowa State star Milan Momcilovic sat on a stool, shoulders slumped. His posture conveyed both disappointment and a sense of finality.

The date: March 28, 2026.

The site: The “House that Michael Jordan Built,” a storied arena formally known as the United Center in Chicago.

The situation: Momcilovic had just been held to six points on 2-for-9 shooting in NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 game against Tennessee — and senior teammate Tamin Lipsey’s heroics weren’t enough to prevent the Cyclones from suffering a 14-point loss.

Momcilovic, a 6-8 junior and the nation’s top 3-point shooter, spoke frankly about his future annnnnnd let’s just say it seemed murky at best in the aftermath of that bitter defeat.

“It’s just so many unknowns right now with the new college basketball landscape,” said Momcilovic, who announced on Monday he’d be transferring to Kentucky and collecting a mountain of money in the process. “Who’s gonna come? Who’s gonna stay? Who are we gonna get in the portal? How good are the freshmen gonna be?”

Lipsey — ISU’s all-time steals leader and one of the program’s legends — had to go. Momcilovic, a three-year starter and last season’s leading scorer, chose to leave. And that’s how Cyclone fans will view both star players moving forward — even though Momcilovic fully intended to go to the NBA, full stop, but didn’t receive the feedback he’d hoped for, which forced him into his lucrative backup plan.

The former player is a hero. Some view the latter as a turncoat. That’s fine, but the truth is bathed in nuance.

Why?

It’s not like Lipsey wasn’t well compensated for his basketball abilities — and if he hadn’t been, he may have transferred at some point, too. Momcilovic found himself in the clutches of a cherished dream that hit a snag and brought him back down to earth. But a backup plan worth upwards of $5 million (reportedly) is one we’d all like to have, right?

Lipsey, for one, doesn’t begrudge the immensely likable and engaging Momcilovic for choosing a concrete and lucrative payday over an uncertain immediate future (financially and otherwise) at the next level. The NIL era in which players can finally be paid for the vast amount of wealth their on-court talents creates for institutions, coaches and TV/streaming platforms needed to happen. Now it needs to mature and become less volatile. We’ll see how that goes now that this president and congress — yay! — are involved, but here’s what Lipsey had to say about Momcilovic’s transfer to so-called Big Blue Nation:

“We did a lot of great things for Iowa State and just with how college basketball is nowadays, it’s hard to blame the player,” the Ames native said. “So, I mean, there (are) no hard feelings to Milan on my side. We’re best friends and I just want the best for him. Obviously, his goal (is) to go to the NBA, but with college basketball, the transfer portal, the NIL market how crazy it is, it’s hard to blame a kid like that when (you) have the opportunities that he has.”

It’s not only hard, it’s dumb. I wish Milan the best, too — and will really miss covering him. He’s honest, funny and a bit naive. Everything a “kid” should be.

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