Huskies Report

Azzi Fudd Weighs In on UConn's Jersey Retirement Night

UConn Huskies guard reflects on the program’s rare jersey-retirement tradition as a Hall of Fame legend’s number heads for the rafters.
Shivani Menon|
Apr 4, 2025; Tampa, FL, USA; Connecticut Huskies guard Azzi Fudd (35) leaves the court after defeating the UCLA Bruins during the fourth quarter in a semifinal of the women's 2025 NCAA tournament at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
Apr 4, 2025; Tampa, FL, USA; Connecticut Huskies guard Azzi Fudd (35) leaves the court after defeating the UCLA Bruins during the fourth quarter in a semifinal of the women's 2025 NCAA tournament at Amalie Arena. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

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UConn Huskies

UConn is preparing for a moment that’s bigger than a game. The Huskies are sitting on an 8-0 record and will face DePaul in their next match. However, 30 minutes before UConn faces its next opponent, UConn legend Sue Bird’s No. 10 is set to rise into the rafters.

This moment feels big for Azzi Fudd, who grew up watching Bird long before she put on a UConn jersey herself. So, when Fudd was asked about what the retirement meant to her, she had something emotional to say.

UConn Huskies guard Azzi Fudd (35)
Nov 30, 2025; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; UConn Huskies guard Azzi Fudd (35) takes the court during player introductions before the game against the Xavier Musketeers at the Cintas Center. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn Images | Aaron Doster-Imagn Images

As Fudd put it, “I watched her some, and she was always someone I looked up to in college and in the W. When I was younger, it was like, ‘Oh, she’s so good, that’s amazing.’ But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve started to really understand the impact she’s had on the game, on and off the court, and what she’s been able to build for herself. Just how impressive that is. I feel like my respect for her has grown as I’ve gotten older, and I’ve been able to appreciate the person she is.”

This tradition is a selective one in Storrs. UConn only retires jerseys of players inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, a threshold Bird crossed this fall. That exclusivity is what makes the moment feel so monumental.

Let’s also not forget that Bird brought two national titles and eight Big East championships to UConn. She ended her career at UConn with 1,378 points and 585 assists. In fact, Bird still holds the UConn record for 3-point field goal percentage at 45.9 and free throw percentage at 89.2.

Bird was also UConn’s first-ever No. 1 WNBA pick, who then went on to win four WNBA titles and more assists than anyone who has ever played in the league, at 3,234. To interact with such a player is an honor of its own kind, and Fudd had something to say about the nerves that hit her.

“We did a panel together, and I was so nervous, but she’s just such a chill person. She’s going to make you feel comfortable. Doing that panel with her made me realize, okay, yes, it’s Bird, but she’s also a normal person. She’s super cool. Then she was on my podcast, which was amazing. So now, I feel like I can see her as more than just this incredible being,” added Fudd.

The Seattle Storm retired Bird's No. 10 in 2023, and now UConn is following the same path. Bird’s jersey will become just the third ever retired by the UConn women’s basketball program.

Who Are the Two Other Players to Have Their UConn Jerseys Retired?

Only two other numbers hang in the rafters at Gampel Pavilion, and they belong to legends who reshaped the sport long before Bird arrived. Rebecca Lobo’s No. 50 was the first to go up. Lobo is the center who carried UConn to a 35–0 national championship season in 1995.

Lobo helped launch the program into a national powerhouse, becoming both a Hall of Famer and one of the first names to be on UConn’s “Huskies of Honor.” Next came Swin Cash’s No. 32. Cash is the versatile star who led UConn to titles in 2000 and 2002.

Cash, much like Lobo, led UConn to an undefeated 39–0 season, and then went on to be drafted 2nd overall by the Detroit Shock. She went on to play in the WNBA for 15 years. Cash, like Lobo, was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

Soon, the list will grow again. Maya Moore, widely considered one of the greatest players in basketball history, has been inducted into both the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame and the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame. That means she is eligible for jersey retirement.

UConn hasn’t announced a date yet, but when it happens, it will be another night that feels like the program stopping to honor its own evolution. Now, Bird’s No. 10 joins that exclusive lineage.

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Shivani Menon
SHIVANI MENON

Shivani Menon is a sports journalist with a background in Mass Communication and a passion for storytelling. She has written for EssentiallySports, College Sports Network, and PFSN, covering Olympic sports like track and field, gymnastics, and alpine skiing, as well as college football, basketball, March Madness, and the NBL Draft. When she's not reporting, she's either on the road chasing sunsets or getting lost in the rhythms of electronic soundscapes.

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