SAD NEWS: FOR KENTUCKY WILDCATS STAR SUFFERING FROM CARRIER INJURY

Nerlens Noel, the projected first pick in the 2013 NBA Draft and the indisputable best player for the Kentucky Wildcats, was in agony beneath the basket. He clutched at his left knee, everything suddenly and painfully in doubt – for him and for his team.

That jarring development overshadowed Florida’s 69-52 whipping of Kentucky. When Noel went down, the outcome of the game – which was already decided – became secondary.

Really, the outcome of Kentucky’s season is secondary, although the injury – a torn left ACL that was confirmed by Kentucky on Wednesday and will require six to eight months of recovery time – increases the chances of the 17-7 Wildcats missing the NCAA tournament. The greater issue is Noel’s future, and the way it is put at risk by a system that forced him to play college ball for a year instead of going straight into the NBA draft.

Noel may have gotten hurt in 2013 no matter where he was playing, but at least he would be under contract and well-compensated by whatever NBA team would have drafted him in the first round last June.

Instead, he wound up playing for scholarship money at Kentucky. And while that is nothing to sneeze at, Noel’s presence on campus represents restraint of trade and a bastardization of what college is supposed to be.

[Watch: North Carolina’s fading tourney chances]

He wants to be a pro basketball player. Let him be a pro basketball player without the charade of college delaying it. Unfortunately, that was not an easy option.

If this injury compromises Noel’s draft status, it’s on David Stern and his league’s minimum age requirement.

In addition to the audible pain under the basket, Noel did not put any weight on his leg and was carried off the court by teammates Archie Goodwin and Julius Mays. The Florida crowd, which had been hushed as he writhed on the floor, gave him a standing ovation.

“It looked ugly,” Kentucky coach John Calipari said, later adding, “I’m physically sick right now for him.”

Florida’s Patric Young, who wound up beneath the basket with Noel, told the Palm Beach Post: “His leg was wobbly, knee looked dislocated. It was gruesome. I don’t want to think about it.”

No college athlete with a viable pro future wants to think about it. Yet it’s the risk they play with every game.

If it was Noel’s final play as a collegian, it was an appropriate one: he flew in and swatted away a Mike Rosario layup with his left hand. Noel is the best shot-blocker in America, and his effort – in addition to his startling athleticism – has been a big reason why.

“I admire the way he plays and I admire his energy,” Florida coach Billy Donovan said. “The injury came from a hustle play, and he’s a hustle-play guy. I think everyone admires, in this league, the way he plays the game.”

[Also: Oklahoma loses freshman Buddy Hield with fractured foot]

For long stretches Tuesday, Noel was the only Wildcat playing with the fearlessness and aggressiveness required to be