The MRI results are in, and what we all suspected is now official: Nerlens Noel has torn the ACL in his left knee and will be out for the rest of the season.
Surgery is expected to be in the next two-to-three weeks, as they wait for the swelling in the knee to subside. The recovery time for a torn ACL is in the neighborhood of six-to-eight months.
It’s a tough pill to swallow. Noel was one of the most entertaining players in the country to watch, a shot-blocking pogo stick that was the one player on the Kentucky roster that could be relied on to play well and play hard on a nightly basis. By all accounts, he’s just a great kid off the court, too.
And it’s fitting, really: if last night ends up being the last time that Noel dons a Kentucky jersey, his final play as a Wildcat will be tracking down a player on a breakaway and blocking a layup attempt. It would be poetic if it wasn’t so depressing.
That said, torn ACLs are not career-ending injuries. He’ll be able to come back from this. Here’s to hoping for a speedy recovery.
Minor setback for a MAJOR comeback!I love you all and can’t thank y’all enough for the prayers.
— Nerlens Noel (@NerlensNoel3) February 13, 2013
You can find Rob on twitter @RobDauster.
