Ansley Almonor. (Vicky Graff Photo)
Ansley Almonor started a combined 65 games the previous two seasons at Fairleigh Dickinson, scored over 1,000 points in his three-year career and was a first-team all-conference player last season.
However, the 6-7 forward admits he knows many believe he will struggle to be a valuable contributor at Kentucky this season.
“I was not heavily recruited but I knew I had more talent than people realized. I also knew how hard I worked,” he said, “I always believed I could play at a school like Kentucky and then the next level (NBA) because of my work ethic.
“I know people doubt me but that just motivates me. I want to prove I can succeed and help Kentucky win. For my whole life I have loved proving people wrong and showing I can do more than people expect.”
Almoner’s toughness/determination is part of his New York upbringing. At UK’s Media Day he joked it was “eat or be eaten” in the New York culture.
“It’s tough every day and made me who I am. It’s a cut-throat environment no matter what you are doing,” Almonor said. “I played in a lot of park leagues and with different AAU teams. You learned that you had to be tough to have any chance to succeed. No one was going to baby you.”
Almonor averaged 16.4 points, 5.1 rebounds and 32 minutes per game last year when he shot 39 percent from 3-point range.
One Response
The Cats looked good in their season opener, but they will be tested when they play Duke, Clemson, Gonzaga, Louisville and Ohio State. Win or lose, those games will make us better in SEC play and those are the games that matter. It will also be interesting to see how they handle the 7’9" kid on Florida’s team in their SEC opener. Playing in Lexington should give them the edge they will need.
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