Floor plan
Behind UConn’s plan to sell pieces of Gampel Pavilion court
STORRS — Has a single plank of polished Northern Hardrock Maple, among the thousands that form the court at Gampel Pavilion, gone untouched by a significant moment in UConn basketball history?
The wood was likely milled out of Northern Michigan, perhaps Wisconsin, in the late 1980s before becoming the squeaky platform for the Huskies’ rise under Geno Auriemma, Jim Calhoun and so many unforgettable players over the ensuing decades.
Sue Bird jumped from a few of those planks for a pull-up jumper to beat Notre Dame in March 2001. Shabazz Napier jumped from others for a put-back jumper to beat Florida in December 2013.
Since the court was nailed down and the building was opened — 33 years ago Friday, on Jan. 27, 1990 — fans have gathered around, or focused intently on, a magical 94-by-50 foot rectangle in the northeast part of our state and the center of our sporting hearts.
“You think of Gampel, the dome, an iconic building, and there’s a lot that has happened on that court over 30-something years,” said Evan Feinglass, who has worked in UConn facility management since 2007. “It’s sort of incredible to think of all the success.”
The original court’s usable life is coming to an end, though, those planks worn down nearly to the nail heads by years of wear and tear and sanding and re-polishing and repainting. The wood, resilient under the pounding of sneakers and even dress shoes — with Calhoun stomping his foot after missed free throws, with Auriemma darting toward officials as Chris Dailey tugs at his shoulder — has weakened and begun to fracture.
So the UConn Board of Trustees last month earmarked $688,480 of university funds for a re
placement, for new maple planks to be assembled as a new court. The massive project, which requires all bleachers to be removed from Gampel, is likely to begin in May, after commencement ceremonies.
The existing court will not be removed haphazardly or in any way convenient to the following installation phase. It will be meticulously carved into sections that UConn hopes will fit on walls, on desks, even as floorboards if one has the space — across a fan base’s spectrum of disposable income and appreciation for history.
Virtually every inch of the Gampel court will be for sale.
“You talk to fans about their emotional connection to UConn basketball, and it’s because of moments,” athletic director David Benedict said. “When you find someone who has a lot of resources and has an emotional connection to something, that’s when you use the word priceless. We’re going to have people who look at this stuff saying, ‘That’s priceless to me.’ This can be what we refer to as a win-win situation. We’re going to try to generate as much money as we can to help pay for the new floor, and provide opportunities to our fans to have a piece of UConn basketball history. Which is great for both.”
Benedict was standing on the Gampel court as he spoke, the floorboards bending and squishing and creaking beneath him. His mind was turning like dollar signs on a slot machine. The likely scenario, one already in planning, is for UConn to establish particular points of interest on the court, develop a grid for the removal crew to base its work on and have sections of the cut up, dressed up and put up for auction.
Maybe, UConn is thinking, someone would want to purchase the 25by-19 midcourt section where the Husky logo is and where every jump ball in the building’s history has taken place. Maybe someone wants to buy an entire free throw lane. Or the sideline sections just beyond the out of bounds line where coaches have paced. Those strips are particularly worn down and — wait — wouldn’t it make sense for Auriemma or Calhoun to take them home as keepsakes?
“Certainly we’ll ask them,” Benedict said. “But they may have to bid.”
UConn will be ambitious with auction items, which are bound to range from wildly expensive to more affordable for any fan.
Take, for instance, the areas of the court where Bird and Napier hit their famous shots, or the area where Donyell Marshall took off for his 360 dunk against Seton Hall in 1994. Maybe a 3-by-3 square is cut out, framed, with a picture affixed, even an accompanying video of the play and an autograph.
What would that go for? It is impossible to gauge right now, but it wouldn’t be cheap. Napier and Bird and Marshall would also have to agree to sign the wood (and be willing to come to campus to do so) and they would be entitled to part of the profit.
There would likely be name, image and likeness opportunities for current players, too. Sure, a fan will be able to purchase a random piece of the court, or of the floor surrounding it. But maybe there will be an opportunity, also, to have that piece signed by, say, Paige Bueckers or Azzi Fudd.
Altogether, this would make for an elaborate auction inventory.
“When we cut out all the special moments, it will be interesting to see how much floor is left,” Benedict said. “Then they’ll just take that apart in pieces and those will be the things you sell off in smaller chunks that are going to be much more affordable for the average person who just wants a commemorative time. How small? I don’t think you want a 3 inch by 3 inch cube. You want something that can have an autograph, that you can put on your shelf. I think, like any auction, when you get into memorabilia, it comes down to how much people are willing to pay.”
The Gampel court is unique in that it does not come apart in sections. It is nailed down just like your kitchen floor. The room, in this case, is 24,000 square feet, with hardwood extending all the way under the bleachers to the base of the concrete concourse.
The “court proper” area — the playing surface and just beyond — is buoyed by a Robbins Sports System underlay, an absorption system that can be tweaked to accommodate different levels of shock and vibration. That system, no longer made, is said to be in good shape will remain intact underneath the new court.
The old court avoided major damage — water damage, for instance — and was serviced annually with the correction of any minor defects and repolishing. More advanced restoration and maintenance has taken place every 5-7 years, with a complete sanding to bare wood, followed by repainting.
This process, performed when major changes were needed, such as a university rebranding or a significant shift in NCAA playing dimensions, has taken years off the court’s life. The planks, upon installation, measured a hair over an inch in total thickness. The usable area, above nails that slot into a grove above tongues, measured about half inch. Each major maintenance project takes roughly 1/16th of an inch off.
“Considering that, and the concentrated use over the years, it’s held up really good,” said Gordon Crunden, chief operating officer of Dalene Flooring, the South Windsor-based company that has serviced the Gampel court for 20-plus years. “When you pull a board out to do a repair, you can see how much wood is left and you start to see some of those micro cracks. The wood flooring itself has been sanded down to a point where the tops of the nails are so close to the top of the wood, it’s starting to cause fractures in between the boards themselves.”
Dalene has installed and/or maintains numerous courts in Connecticut and Massachusetts, including ones at the XL Center, Mohegan Sun Arena, Fairfield University and Holy Cross.
Crunden, 54, grew up in Hartland, a UConn fan. He still attends many games, both men’s and women’s, and has worked at Dalene since he was 16. The folks around Gampel call him “The Court Guru.” He said courts that see lesser use can last up to 50 years and that the next UConn court will be expected to last about 35.
So UConn can plan a second auction for, say, 2058.
The women’s basketball team improved to 36721 in Gampel Pavilion with a victory Monday night over DePaul. The men’s team is 216-41 including Wednesday’s loss to Xavier in Storrs. That’s 644 basketball games. The teams also practiced exclusively in the building until the 2014 opening of the adjacent Werth Champions Center. The women’s volleyball team has used Gampel for practice and competition since its opening, too.
Such frequent use shortens a functional lifespan. Now the court and flooring, under which also lays an electrical labyrinth, will be removed … very carefully. There are thousands and thousands of planks, many of them measuring about 4 feet long and an inch and a half wide, in the arena. And who knows how many nails.
“It’s been there so long, it will be like Capone’s vault when we pull it up,” Feinglass said.
Benedict is hoping there’s enough of a market for the old court to make up for the cost of the new one.
“If you take a piece of wood that’s 2 feet by 2 feet and sell it, ok, it’s a piece of the floor,” Benedict said. “But if you have Maya Moore or Ray Allen sign it? And there’s a picture on that spot of court that you own? No one else will ever have that. It will be certified. And what is the value now of that piece of wood? It’s a lot more.
“We could fly them in and have little flags set up where they have to go and sign. You’ve got to go over here and put your shoe in some type of stuff and step down and put your shoeprint there. People probably think I’m crazy when I say some of this stuff. But I think there are some unique things you can do to add value that wouldn’t necessarily be that difficult to do.”