Basketball Star Chase Budinger Has NBA Future

Basketball has not seen too many phenoms the likes of Chase Budinger.

Think of a cross between Napoleon Dynamite and Michael Jordan.

The 6-foot-8 senior at La Costa Canyon High School with the mop of reddish-blond curls is arguably the most dynamic figure to appear on the San Diego County basketball scene since another noted mop-top, Bill Walton, patrolled the court for Helix High more than 35 years ago.

And while the Jordan comparison might sound overblown at the least and reckless hyperbole at the worst, the fact is that Budinger possesses both a high-flying, rim-rocking aerial game and a smooth, deadeye perimeter game that made Jordan an icon of the game.

But comparisons with the greats of the game have become commonplace for Budinger in a season in which he became the county’s all-time leading scorer, led La Costa Canyon to the school’s first San Diego Section championship, and was selected to play in the McDonald’s High School All-American Game. He was also named California’s Gatorade State Player of the Year.

Longtime San Diego Union-Tribune sportswriter Steve Brand recently suggested that Budinger might be the greatest basketball player ever produced in the county. And the comparisons between Budinger, a wing player, and Walton, a traditional post player, have grown more insistent over the past year.

“First, it is an honor to have people comparing me to him,” Budinger said. “But I try not to take that in or make that comparison myself yet, because he has done so much more than I have …”

With a soft chuckle that served as a muted confirmation of the absurdity of the notion, in a voice that barely topped a whisper, Budinger said, “I mean he was the NBA MVP.”

Then he went on to say, “I’m just trying to make a name for myself. I try not to take that in and instead focus on my task at hand and hopefully I’ll get as far as he did in his career.”

There is a lot about Budinger, though, that screams typical Southern California teenager.

“I’m just a normal kid,” he claimed.

On Saturdays he likes to play play poker with his buddies. His music of choice is rap, and when pressed to name an artist, he threw out Eminem. When it comes to movies, he goes for stimulating fare such as “Gladiator” or the first “Matrix.”

“I’m a guy who likes all those action movies,” he said.

That active streak was evident early on when his parents toted him along to the sports activities of his older sister, Brittanie, and older brother, Duncan.

“Since I was little, I always had to drive down to all the games of my brother’s and sister’s,” he said. “My parents would take me because they went to every game. I always had a ball in my hands. I was the little kid who ran on the court at halftime to shoot around. And I think that has helped me. That, and watching them play. Then as I got older, playing my brother in our backyard. I was always really competitive and when he beat me that just made me tougher.”

Indeed, Chase was pressed just to keep up with his siblings. Brittanie went to the University of San Francisco where she has been referred to as the “Legend of the Hilltop” for her volleyball exploits, ending her career with the two highest single-season kill totals in school history. While the week after Chase’s basketball season ended with a loss in the state tournament, Duncan was named the MVP of the volleyball tournament in which his Long Beach State team played.

Almost as soon as Budinger’s basketball season concluded, he was back on the court with the La Costa Canyon volleyball team. He plans on playing through the summer with his club team, Seaside Volleyball, before committing full-time to basketball when he begins attending the University of Arizona in the fall.

One of the most agonizing parts of the recruiting process was resolving the volleyball issue.

“It was a tough choice,” Budinger said. “It was a big decision. My family and I sat down and talked about it. I loved playing both. But it was time to focus on one. I had talked to a couple of people who had done it (played volleyball and basketball in college) and they said it just wears your body down.”

Still, Budinger maintains that his volleyball skill-set contributed significantly to his success in basketball.

“It definitely helps,” he said. “I wouldn’t be able to dunk like I do without volleyball, and it helps with quickness and everything. I think it’s the best two-sport crossover that there is.”

Volleyball is a major high school sport in San Diego and Budinger made waves by leading La Costa Canyon to the section title in his sophomore and junior years. He was named the county player of the year both seasons. The timing and jumping skills that he developed in volleyball were evident recently when he finished a close second in the dunk contest at the McDonald’s Game to Gerald Henderson Jr., of The Episcopal Academy in suburban Philadelphia, who has signed with Duke. That was after Budinger wowed the 3,000-plus jammed into San Diego State’s Peterson Gym with two perfect dunks in the first round of the competition. Henderson outscored him 60-58 in the final round.

Although Budinger won’t play the sport in college, he has trained with the USA Junior National volleyball team and will remain on the radar of national team coaches as long as he remains ambulatory.

“It’s not over yet,” Budinger said, when questioned about his volleyball future this spring. He was talking specifically about his immediate plans to play high school volleyball, but depending on the direction his basketball career takes, volleyball will continue to be a strong fall-back option for as long as he wants it to be one.

Budinger started on the La Costa Canyon varsity basketball team as a freshman, but it wasn’t until he attended the ABCD Camp in 2004 that he made his way onto the major college recruiting radar. The camp, held at Farleigh Dickinson University in Hackensack, N.J., brought together the best high school players in the nation including Gerald Green (Boston Celtics), Amir Johnson (Detroit Pistons draftee) and Greg Oden (No. 1 high school player Class of 2006).

“I got an invitation to the ABCD Camp and it was a real awakening experience for me,” Budinger said. “I was a nobody back then and it was quite a surprise. There were all these great players, big players, real fast guys. I came in not expecting anything. But as camp went on I got better and better. I fit in pretty well and started to make a name for myself. I saw that I could compete at that level with a bunch of different guys. That really started my career.”

Soon after the major basketball powers were lining up to talk to him. So Budinger and his family — father Duncan, and mother, Mara, who have been described as recreational volleyball players — had to sift through the myriad offers.

“Early on I decided I wanted to stay on the West Coast,” Budinger said. “I didn’t want to bother with the East Coast schools. So my decision narrowed down a lot. The four schools I finally decided on were Arizona, UCLA, USC and Kansas. Those were the teams I was focusing on and after a little while I pushed Kansas away because I didn’t feel it was a good fit for me.

“It was a tough decision. UCLA and USC had good volleyball programs, so I was twisting and turning that in my head. But I had a special feeling about Arizona. I always watch their games on TV and they have a special environment. Still, USC and UCLA were right up in L.A. and my parents could always come up and watch me play. It ended up that Arizona is the right fit with the style of offense they run and because Lute Olson is the best coach in college. And if I want to get to the next, next level, that’s the coach that I need to do that.”

The coaches at the last level couldn’t have been more impressed. This is what a couple of them had to say about Budinger:

“He is the best I’ve ever seen,” said Alex Estrada of Eastlake High School, after Budinger put together 50 points, nine rebounds and three blocks against his team in the San Diego Section Division I championship game. “When we won (the section title) in 2001, we played Josh Childress (Lakewood High, Stanford, Atlanta Hawks) and he doesn’t touch Chase. We heard all the hype and he’s everything he was advertised as. We couldn’t stop him, but they have a great supporting cast.”

“That guy is for real,” Long Beach Jordan coach Ron Massey said after Budinger scored 45 points in an 84-76 win in the first round of the state tournament. “He’s the best shooter I’ve seen this year. We tried to keep a hand in his face, and we did. He still made shots. A couple of times we went into a scramble and sent two guys at him. That didn’t work either.”

What transpired during the McDonald’s Game stood as an example of how Budinger may continue to defy stereotypes and confound opponents. Budinger was named co-MVP in the recent McDonald’s Game (with Kevin Durant of Montrose Christian School in Rockville, Md., who is headed to Texas) despite some fairly pedestrian statistics: 11 points, four assists and three rebounds.

Five players in the game scored more points than Budinger, including Durant who finished with a game-high 25. But it was Budinger who was right in the middle of things in the second half when the West team ripped off a 17-0 run en route to a 112-94 victory.

That run was highlighted by two plays in which Budinger triggered the fastbreak before delivering nifty passes that led to easy baskets. He also knocked down a three-pointer during the charge. Not once did he dunk, but he also didn’t indulge in any of the gratuitous showmanship that the McDonald’s Game has witnessed in recent years.

The big trick will be for Budinger to carry on his success at Arizona. He is looking forward to the opportunity to focus on one sport. During the summer, with the exception of a Junior Olympic volleyball tournament and the elite basketball camp in Tucson, there will be plenty of time to work with his personal trainer, Trent Suzuki, to build up his strength.

It’s refreshing to hear his response to a question about what he most needed to work on for next season.

“My defense,” he said, almost without hesitation. “I think I really need to concentrate and work on my defense. I need to get quicker, get stronger, and be a little smarter. I think I can be a good defender. I just have to put the effort in and work on it.”

In this day and age, bravado trumps introspection and humility with most of the blue chip high school basketball players. Not many of them would even give lip service to their defensive inadequacies. But again, Budinger isn’t your typical basketball phenom.

Whether he ever makes it to the “next, next level,” that kind of attitude should ensure that this will not be the last you hear of Chase Budinger.

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