Pope's New Trent Noah Timeline Puts the Opener in Doubt

Kentucky's 69-49 exhibition win over Little Rock came with a catch, and the catch is Trent Noah.

After the game, Mark Pope acknowledged that the junior from Harlan County is still working back from a hamstring injury. KSR's Jack Pilgrim reported that Noah recently had a setback, and fans at Thursday's donor practice watched him limp around the floor.

"With Trent, you know, he's kind of struggling a little bit right now to regain his health," Pope said. His estimate was "several weeks to a month right now, not months and months."

There was one encouraging note. Pope said Noah had "a really good workout" Friday, running and jumping in a tightly controlled setting. But after seeing Kam Williams re-injure his foot last season, the staff won't push it. "We're not going to rush it," Pope said. "When he gets back, he's going to make a massive difference for us."

How the timeline keeps moving
This one stings because the outlook has worsened in steps. At Media Day, Noah said he'd dealt with two separate hamstring problems and expected to be back within a couple of weeks with no limitations. At the Tipoff Luncheon, Pope said, "We'll get Trent back." Now the clock has reset. Several weeks to a month from Oct. 16 runs past the Nov. 3 opener against Manhattan. By the following Thursday, 247Sports' Cole Parke had listed Noah as week-to-week, and FOX 56's Connor Sturgill reported there was no timeline at all.

What Kentucky loses without him
Noah is a junior forward, and his value is versatility more than any one skill. He can guard bigger wings, crash the glass from the perimeter and space the floor well enough to keep defenses honest. He's also a homegrown Kentuckian on a roster built mostly through the portal, and that matters in the locker room and in Rupp.

How Pope can cover the minutes
The good news is that this roster has more wing and forward bodies than last year's did:
- Milan Momcilovic (6-9) is the obvious anchor at forward. He led the nation in 3-point percentage (48.7) at Iowa State and made 136 threes, a school single-season record, and he grabbed seven rebounds in the exhibition.
- Braydon Hawthorne (sophomore) and Justin McBride (senior) give Pope two more forward options with different builds and skill sets.
- Alex Wilkins scored 11 against Little Rock and can slide up when Pope goes small.
- Mason Williams, the freshman guard, had 10 points, three assists and three steals in the opener, and his defense gives Pope room to play three guards.

None of them is a perfect replacement. Noah's mix of toughness and shooting is hard to copy. Together, though, they're enough to get through November.

The better news: Kam Williams
The brighter update concerns Kam Williams. Pope said Friday's imaging on his foot after his second surgery was "extremely positive." Williams was cleared for the next step in training and was doing full-court drills and dunking after shootaround. "It makes it even more important that we get Kam back on time," Pope said. He has also been listed week-to-week.

Elsewhere on the injury report, there's still no return date for Jerone Morton, who hurt his knee in practice. Malachi Moreno has been dealing with a minor hamstring and back issue that kept him out of practice the week before the exhibition and limited his minutes. He still grabbed 11 rebounds.

Our Take: Plan on Kentucky opening the season without Noah, and don't panic about it. The smart play is the one Pope is already making, which is to get him healthy for SEC play rather than for November non-conference games. A one-month absence is a nuisance. Rushing back from a third hamstring problem could cost him the season. If Williams returns on time, this group can handle the early schedule, and Noah becomes a midseason boost.

Next up was No. 19 Texas Tech at Rupp on Oct. 23 in the second exhibition; Kentucky won 76-65.

Sources: KSR/On3, injury report (Pope quotes) · A Sea Of Blue, Noah injury update · WYMT, Noah at Media Day · Yahoo Sports, Kam Williams update · 247Sports' Cole Parke on X · FOX 56's Connor Sturgill on X · ESPN Kentucky roster · UK Athletics, Momcilovic release · WKYT, Little Rock recap