Nothing Less Than Huskies of Honor For Kemba

No matter what happens over the next three days, one thing should definitely be raised to the rafters of Gampel Pavilion on Opening Night next fall – a placard inducting Kemba Walker into the "Huskies of Honor."

Yes, I hope it’s joined by a certain other banner, but that will be taken care of on the court. No matter what any writer writes or pundit posits, the players (and coaches) will determine their own destiny in Houston. So why not write about something off-the-court writers and fans do have some say in?

When Walker came to UConn three years ago, none of the fans knew what to expect. In fact, I don’t think the coaching staff really knew, so fans certainly wouldn’t. Walker was a lightly regarded recruit for most of his basketball playing career. We’ve all heard the stories of him playing behind Villanova guard Corey Fisher in middle school in the Bronx. He wasn’t a starter at Rice High School when he arrived and he wasn’t a star on the all-important AAU circuit either.

You could say he was a late bloomer, but generally that is reserved for basketball players who grow from 6-foot-2 to 6-foot-10 in one summer and suddenly light up NCAA assistant coaches’ BlackBerrys.  Walker never even reached 6-foot-2.

Of course, all of this helped UConn in securing Walker’s commitment. And no one could repay that faith like he would.

The first time I saw Walker play was in the 2008 McDonald’s All-American game. At the time he was the fifth-ranked point guard in the country according to Rivals.com (behind Jrue Holiday, Brandon Jennings, Tyreke Evans and Willie Warren). He threw down one of the biggest dunks I’ve ever seen by a point guard (over current Sixers’ PG Holiday) in that game.

I was impressed, but he also showed why he wasn’t the best point guard in the country – he couldn’t shoot and he turned the ball over too much.

That didn’t change much during his freshman year, backing up A.J. Price. He obviously grew over his years in Storrs. You don’t need me to tell you that. You saw it with your own eyes. And now, in what will likely be Walker’s last season at UConn (unfortunate for Storrs, fortunate for the NBA), he’s become the best point guard in UConn history. 

If you had told me Walker would go up in the Huskies of Honor when he was a freshman I would’ve laughed at you. Sure, he could be good, but that good?

Ben Gordon isn’t even in that echelon. Two players have made it in the championship era (1999-present): Richard Hamilton and Emeka Okafor. That’s it. No Khalid El-Amin. No Taliek Brown or Rudy Gay or Price.

All good players. None belongs in the Huskies of Honor.

I like it that way. The Halls of Fame in professional sports have gotten too watered down. Numbers retired in college have become the same. Kansas (the second-winningest program ever) retired Drew Gooden’s number for Pete’s sake. It’s up there in the rafters at Phog Allen with Wilt Chamberlain. UConn can’t let its Huskies of Honor become like that.

Walker has earned the distinction. Sure, he was just named a first-team AP All-American and he’ll probably split some player of the year awards with Jimmer Fredette, but those don’t even have to be the reasons he is honored.

 Just play the last nine games of this season on a monitor on a constant loop under the giant number 15. That’ll cover it.