Andrew Carr has been one of the Kentucky Wildcats‘ most important players this season, at least for some stretches of play. While Lamont Butler and Otega Oweh also deserve a claim to that title, Carr has consistently produced offensively, and it has made all the difference.

With the Cats now riding a two-game losing streak after dropping a road battle with the Vanderbilt Commodores on Saturday, the question of when Carr will return at full strength is going to be even more pressing for fans.

Carr did play the following Saturday against Alabama, but he managed just 18 minutes and went 1/4 from the field and clearly was not near 100%. It didn’t help that he was a liability on the defensive side of the court as well.

He didn’t end up taking the court in Nashville, and the more discouraging part is what head coach Mark Pope said about Carr’s progress in the pregame radio show.

Pope’s postgame comments weren’t much better, at one point saying “a few weeks” before correcting himself to saying “a few days” as to when Carr could return.

Carr spent his first two seasons at Delaware before transferring to Wake Forest, where he spent two more seasons. For his fourth straight season, Carr is averaging double figures. He’s tallying 10.9 points per game in his first season with the Cats and also shooting 53.9% from the field.

Carr has been the best big man for Kentucky throughout the bulk of the season, and his looming injury has put a dark cloud over the Cats’ recent stretch of play. With SEC play heating up, his presence is needed now more than ever.

Let’s hope Carr starts to progress sooner rather than later. With the Tennessee Volunteers on deck, things certainly won’t get easier for Kentucky.