Former NBA player Chase Budinger will represent the United States in beach volleyball at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, which begins next month. Budinger and colleague Miles Evans were both named to the United States men’s national team on Wednesday.
Budinger opted to pursue a career in basketball. Following three years of NCAA basketball with the Arizona Wildcats, he was chosen by the Detroit Pistons as the 44th overall pick in the 2009 NBA Draft.
Former NBA player Budinger played three seasons for the Houston Rockets from 2009 to 2012. After that, he was traded to the Minnesota Timberwolves and played until 2015. Budinger was then dealt to the Indiana Pacers in July 2015 for Damjan Rudez. Following his time with the Pacers, he was traded to the Phoenix Suns and played only one season. Budinger decided to retire from basketball in 2017 to focus on his professional beach volleyball career. In 2018, he made his AVP debut, partnering with Sean Rosenthal, and in 2019, he will collaborate with Casey Patterson.
Former NBA player Budinger revealed the reason for the transition
Budinger also discussed his early retirement from the NBA and transition to the volleyball team in an interview with the Sandcast Volleyball Podcast in 2018. He explained that he was finished with basketball and felt it was time to return to volleyball. He added that many retired athletes struggle with figuring out their next steps, but he felt fortunate to have successfully transitioned to a different sport and competed at a high level.
Budinger has not achieved much success in the NBA. However, fans are hopeful that he will impress everyone in the 2024 Summer Olympics.
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