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Former Houston Rockets Star Chase Budinger Qualifies for Olympics in Beach Volleyball
Chase Budinger has achieved a historic Olympic qualification in beach volleyball competition at the age of 36.
Chase Budinger, a seven-year NBA veteran and former college basketball star, will represent the United States in beach volleyball at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris next month. On Wednesday, Budinger and teammate Miles Evans earned their spots on the U.S. men's team. As of late, they are ranked No. 2 in the United States, behind only Miles Partain and Andy Benesh, who are ranked Nos. 5 and 13 respectively.
36-year-old Budinger excelled in both volleyball and basketball while attending La Costa Canyon High School in Encinitas, California, where he grew up. In addition to being a 2006 McDonald's All-American in basketball, he was the 2005 National High School Player of the Year for Volleyball Magazine.
Budinger’s NBA journey
The 6-foot-7 player spent three seasons in Arizona (2006–09) averaging 17.0 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 2.8 assists in 100 games (all starts). After being chosen in the second round of the 2009 NBA draft, Budinger played 407 games (50 starts) with the Houston Rockets, Minnesota Timberwolves, Indiana Pacers, and Phoenix Suns, averaging 7.9 points, 3.0 rebounds, and 1.2 assists. After spending a season playing volleyball in Europe, he switched to beach volleyball and joined the AVP Tour in 2018.
The former Rockets star becomes the second player to achieve this feat
According to NBC Sports, Budinger will become the only player to participate in both Olympic beach volleyball and NBA regular season play. In 1964, Keith Erickson, who played basketball for UCLA in the NCAA championships in 1964 and 1965, was a member of the U.S. men's indoor volleyball team. The Tokyo tournament saw the Americans place ninth. In 1972, Erickson and the Los Angeles Lakers won an NBA championship.
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