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If you are wondering how to listen to the Olympics, iHeartRadio has you covered. iHeartRadio is the exclusive audio home of NBC's coverage of the 2024 Paris Olympics, so it is the only place to listen to the Olympics stream. The free iHeart app is where to go to listen to exclusive play-by-play action of Team USA. To celebrate, we are spotlighting some of the country's athletes that are vying for gold.
Former NBA player Chase Budinger is set to represent the United States in beach volleyball at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris. Budinger, 36, and his partner, Miles Evans, secured their spot on the U.S. men's team after qualifying on June 26.
Budinger, a native of Encinitas, California, was a standout in both basketball and volleyball at La Costa Canyon High School. He was named Volleyball Magazine's National High School Player of the Year in 2005 and was a 2006 McDonald's All American in basketball.
He played college basketball at Arizona, where he averaged 17.0 points, 5.8 rebounds, and 2.8 assists in 100 games over three seasons (2006-09). Budinger was selected in the second round of the 2009 NBA draft and played for the Houston Rockets, Minnesota Timberwolves, Indiana Pacers, and Phoenix Suns from 2009 to 2016.
After a season in Europe, Budinger transitioned to beach volleyball, joining the AVP Tour in 2018. He had five different partners before teaming up with Evans in 2023. The pair is currently ranked second in the U.S. and 13th in the world.
Budinger will become the first athlete to play both an NBA regular season game and Olympic beach volleyball. He expressed his excitement about the transition on the Sandcast volleyball podcast in 2018, saying, "I was lucky enough to just transition into a different sport immediately and play at the highest level."
From exclusive NBC play-by-play action of Team USA to live hourly updates from the Games to original Summer Games podcasts, you can listen to the Olympics stream only on iHeartRadio. Find out more about how to listen.