If you haven't heard of Jason Noble yet, you will soon. The
21-year-old defender was the second selection in the Major Series
Lacrosse draft this year (behind his twin brother Jeremy, the
offensive half of the brilliant yin and yang of Noble lacrosse). He
won't go much lower than second when the National Lacrosse League
gathers this September for its annual entry draft, if at all.Jason isn't the biggest defender around, but he was voted the best in the Ontario Junior A league last summer. In fact, he's better without a stick than many players are with one. That's not idle speculation or hyperbole, either. Noble lost his stick early in a shift during last summer's OLA semi-finals against Whitby. He was manned up against one of the Warriors stud offensive talents and never let him get so much as a sniff of the net. That's how good his positioning and footwork are. Think Sandy Chapman with the potential to be even better than the Rock star.
In a story on pressconnects.com, one of Noble's teammates gives a succinct explanation of what it is that makes him so good. “Everything that anyone would want to play with, Jason Noble is. You go into a team and you play with talented guys, but Jason Noble is on a different level. He just does everything right,” says Tom Freshour, a junior playing defence with Noble at Cornell. Noble will make his MSL debut this summer with the Kitchener-Waterloo Kodiaks.
Unfortunately for KW, it's unlikely that Jeremy will be able to join him this year because of his commitments in Denver, where he'll be playing in MLL and taking some classes towards his degree. But down the road, expect the pair to be impact players in MSL for years to come. And while grabbing the high-profile offensive player is always a sexier pick at a draft, don't even think about being disappointed if your NLL team picks Jason Noble this fall. You definitely won't be when you see the Orangeville Northmen grad play for your side.
