Jim Calhoun, who took over a regional program at the University of Connecticut 26 years ago and built it into a three-time NCAA champion and a perennial national power, has announced his retirement as the UConn men’s basketball coach.

Under a transition agreement that runs through next spring, Calhoun, 70, will continue his association with the university as a Special Assistant to Athletic Director Warde Manuel, providing services to the university in support of men’s basketball, the Division of Athletics, the UConn Health Center, and the university at large.

Kevin Ollie, a former UConn student-athlete who has served as an assistant coach at the University of Connecticut for the past two seasons and is a 13-year NBA veteran, has been named the head men’s basketball coach at UConn.

Ollie will have a contract that runs through April 4, 2013, and will be paid at an annualized rate of $625,000. He becomes the 18th head coach in the history of the UConn program and only the fourth since the 1969-70 season.

Ollie is a graduate of UConn who played 13 seasons in the NBA, completing his career in 2009-10 as a member of the Oklahoma City Thunder. He played for 11 different franchises in his NBA career, playing in 662 career contests.

Ollie was a two-time team captain at UConn and helped lead the Huskies to BIG EAST Regular Season Championships in 1993-94 and 1994-95, advancing to the NCAA Sweet 16 and Elite Eight, respectively, in those seasons. Ollie was an All-BIG EAST Third Team selection as a senior in 1994-95 and was named to the UConn Basketball All-Century Team in 2001. He still stands No. 3 all-time at UConn in assists and No. 1 at UConn in assists in BIG EAST contests.