Anybody seen him play yet? If things continue as they have, any chance he can be our Ibaka?
Its a little early to say just yet. I've seen him play only twice so far, and my first impression is that he's close to being in the Anthony Davis class defensively, but not offensively. But yeah, I can see him being a version of Ibaka. He definitely needs to add some muscle to his frame, but he's a terrific athlete with great timing and instincts when it comes to blocking shots. So far, his rebounding has been fine as well, but he could improve in that area. Another guy, who doesn't get the press that Noel gets, but who is making a big splash defensively while improving offensively is Jeff Withey, who is leading all of college in blocked shots.
He's not quite the athlete that Noel is, but his instincts are off the chart. Another player that bears watching, who is also on the Kentucky team, is Willie Cauley Stein, a 7'0" center, that currently coming off the bench, but who is playing so well, that he may break into the starting lineup with added minutes.
For some comparisons between the three players here are some of their basic stats.
Noel: 6'10" - 225 Lbs - 30.6 MPG - 11.6 PPG - 52.8% FGP - 9.0 RPG - 3.1 BPG
Withey: 7'1" - 235 Lbs - 30.0 MPG - 14.6 PPG - 59.1% FGP - 8.1 RPG - 5.7 BPG
Stein: 7'0" - 245 Lbs - 19 MPG - 8.0 PPG - 57.1% FGP - 5.3 RPG - 2.0 BPG
In fairness to Stein and Noel, Withey is a senior, so he has three years of experience. To his credit, he's improved every year in college. What I like about Stein, is that he's been a big surprise, and he's been extremely effective in just over half the minutes of the other two. Project his numbers out into the 30 MPG range, and he falls somewhere between Noel and Withey in production.
Its still early yet, so we'll see where they are a couple of months from now. Of course, of the three, Noel is the true PF, whereas the other two are better suited to playing center. Especially Withey! I could see Cauley Stein playing at the PF spot due to his athleticism.