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On Friday, UConn fans will get their first chance to see the 2019-20 editions of the Huskies’ basketball teams at First Night. However, it’ll also serve as a chance to get reacquainted with an old friend. According to the Celtics’ Marc D’Amico, UConn men’s basketball legend Kemba Walker will be attendance — his first time on campus in seven or eight years (by the national champion’s estimation.)
It will certainly be a lot easier for Walker to visit Storrs now after he signed a four-year, $141-million max contract with the Boston Celtics over the offseason.
Earlier this month, Jim Calhoun visited Walker at Celtics practice and told The Athletic’s Jay King what UConn fans already know:
Jim Calhoun on Kemba Walker: “I’ve coached 50 years. I’ve had 30 NBA players who played at least four years. He’s as special as anybody I’ve ever had in the sense of leadership, caring. And he has incredible confidence with humility, which is a really hard thing to have.”
— Jay King (@ByJayKing) October 2, 2019
One of the Walker’s last appearances at Gampel was celebrating the 2011 team’s unbelievable run to a national championship — capped with a victory over Brad Stevens’ Butler Bulldogs, who now coaches Walker with the Celtics. He’s also been in attendance to watch a game since graduating after the 2011 season.
This year, First Night is being combined with the Fall Concert. The doors to Gampel Pavilion will open at 5:30 p.m. with the event beginning at 6 p.m. At 7 p.m., the players from each team will be introduced before a skill competition at 7:30 p.m. Once the basketball festivities conclude, T-Pain will take the stage and perform.
Keep up with both the Huskies’ basketball teams all season long here at The UConn Blog with our UConn men’s basketball and UConn women’s basketball team pages. Also, be sure to follow us on Twitter @TheUConnBlog, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram to stay up to date with all the action!