Budinger and Evans had their toes in the sand for just 32 minutes — not nearly enough time to appreciate the view, but enough for others to savor the grandeur of the moment.
Decades ago, a young Budinger built a dream board and put the Olympic ring on it. Big dreams, but the two-sport athlete didn't specifically envision playing for Team USA or representing his country in men's volleyball, as some NBA players do. He just wanted to compete in the Olympics. On Monday, he made history as the first athlete to play in the NBA. and She is a member of the Olympic beach volleyball team.
Now 36 years old and more than eight years since his last NBA appearance, Budinger's dream board has become a reality.
“It definitely lived up to my expectations,” Budinger said of her Olympic debut. “It was unbelievable. It was breathtaking. It just felt surreal.”
Budinger's two passions overlap in many ways: He still wears a tank top and shorts to the office, but now he can pair them with wraparound sunglasses, and volleyball fans love the big block just as much as NBA fans do.
Budinger isn't known in the league as a tall ring protector, but on the beach he's a 6-foot-7 goalie. When Budinger pushed one of the French players into the net to put the U.S. ahead 9-6 in the second set, a man in a bucket hat with a blue star mimicked the finger-waving routine made famous by Dikembe Mutombo. No, no, no!
Budinger made no such bold move, but after completing one of his four blocks that led to points, it may have been appropriate for him to place his index fingers over his lips as he and Evans silenced the largely pro-France crowd all afternoon.
Budinger must understand the power of home-court advantage: When he felt, not just heard, the cheers for France's Arnaud Gautier-Latte and Youssef Crewe, he knew the Americans were on enemy ground. And he loved it.
“It was so loud there, the French fans really came out to support their team. [they] “Everybody was yelling,” Budinger said, before turning to Evans during the Frenchman's introductions and saying, “'Oh man, this feels amazing!' I love playing against this team. It brought back a lot of memories of going to NBA arenas and playing on the road.”
Budinger played seven seasons in the NBA, mostly as a bench athlete. In the 2012 NBA All-Star Dunk Contest, he imitated the movie “White Men Can't Jump” by jumping over rapper Sean Combs while dressed as Woody Harrelson's character. (If I had a time machine, I'd definitely go back and jump over someone else.) During the 2016-17 season, Budinger went to Spain to further his career. But after a year abroad, he was thinking about his future. More specifically, his future in volleyball.
“I knew this was the path I wanted to take, but I remember questioning myself at the time when I left basketball and wondering if this was the right decision,” Budinger said. “Am I doing the right thing for me? But after three weeks of sulking, I changed my mind.”
Budinger didn't just think of the beach as a hobby after he retired. He traveled the world to competitions, found Evans as his partner and trained five days a week, all with one goal in mind: qualifying for the Olympics. Along the way, he won praise from his former colleagues.
Evans posted a video of members of the U.S. men's basketball team greeting Budinger ahead of Friday's opening ceremony.
“Congratulations! I was watching. I was watching,” LeBron James can be heard telling Budinger in the video.
After Monday's game, France's team player Gautier Ratte said he was impressed with how Budinger has made the transition from hardwood to sand courts.
“I have a lot of respect for him,” Gautier-Ratt said, “I don't know if it has to do with his experience in the NBA, but from my perspective, he was the only one who was calm on the court. The other three, his partner and the two of us, were more stressed, more pressured. He was more relaxed… that made the difference.”
Budinger's basketball past may have taught him to keep his cool, but he admitted he felt “extremely nervous” just as he did before his NBA debut. But after the stadium announcer introduced Budinger as an American player “making history,” he and Evans worked in perfect harmony, winning two sets with ease. Budinger knows he should slow down a bit in his next match and try to enjoy the dream.
“It just felt like it went by too quickly,” Budinger said. “There were moments where I thought we should have enjoyed the view a little bit more, and maybe we could have taken a little longer to take the time out to enjoy the view.”
