UK freshmen forward Willie Cauley-Stein knows he is going to be counted on to replace some of the production lost by Nerlens Noel. That does not mean he is going to grow Noel’s signature flattop any time soon.
“I’m not Nerlens,” he said. “He does things that are just uncanny, like his ability to block shots. I don’t have that ability. But what I do have is being athletic, be able to play out on a guard, just simple stuff like that and just hustle. That’s all I’ve got to take care of.”
Cauley-Stein and his teammates will face their first challenge in replacing Noel, who suffered a season-ending torn ACL at Florida, Saturday at Tennessee.