His long, distinguished career as a basketball player over, Emeka Okafor went searching for what is now fashionably called his “second act.”

He considered coaching, enrolled in the NBA’s coaching development program, but the all-consuming lifestyle wasn’t for him. He had the academic pedigree to succeed in almost any field, but needed a connection to the game.

“So I took a little time off to spend time with family, with my wife and our two kids, kind of figuring out what I was going to do with the rest of my life,” Okafor said. “When mulling things over, every time I stepped into a basketball environment, I just felt at home. I explored different avenues of the game.”

Now the curtain is about to go up. What’s next for Emeka Okafor, 43, star of UConn’s 2004 national championship tea

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