The former guard will officially take his place amongst some of the most important figures in program history.
UConn announced Thursday that Ben Gordon will finally be inducted into the Huskies of Honor on Feb. 7. The ceremony at Gampel Pavilion will take place at halftime of UConn’s Big East matchup against the St. John’s Red Storm.
Gordon, a Mount Vernon, New York native, played for the Huskies from 2001-04 and was a key member of UConn’s 2004 national title team alongside Emeka Okafor. He averaged 16.9 points and 4.1 assists per game across his career in Storrs and is currently seventh in scoring in program history with 1,795 total points. He also holds the school record with 2.32 made threes per game.
Gordon’s best season came in 2004, where he averaged 18.5 points and 4.5 assists per game, earning Big East Tournament MVP, Final Four Most Outstanding Player and Final Four All-Tournament honors as part of the Huskies’ title run. Gordon scored 36 points in UConn’s Elite Eight win over Alabama and had 21 points in the title game victory over Georgia Tech.
After his time at UConn, Gordon was selected with the No. 3 overall pick in the 2004 NBA Draft by the Chicago Bulls, kicking off a successful 11-year career. Gordon won the 2005 NBA Sixth Man of the Year award with the Bulls and later spent time with Detroit, Charlotte and Orlando, averaging nearly 15 points a game in his career.
The honor is a long time coming for Gordon, who struggled with his mental health after his time in NBA. He joined the 2004 UConn team for its induction in the Huskies of Honor last season as part of the team’s 20th anniversary, and now will have his moment to be rightfully honored as one of the program’s all-time greats.