Opinion: Ranking the Top 5 Athletes to come out of Arizona

Arizona State v Arizona
Arizona State v Arizona / Christian Petersen/GettyImages
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Chase Budinger
FIVB Beach Volleyball World Tour: Itapema 2021 - Day 2 / Silvio Avila/GettyImages

Honorable Mention No. 2 - Chase Budinger

Maybe not one of the more popular picks, but in terms of athletic ability and accomplishments, Chase is worthy of being an honorable mention on this list.

A once skilled collegiate basketball player, Chase had a nice career at the University of Arizona before moving on and putting together a respectable NBA career in which he averaged 7.9 points and 3.0 rebounds per game that spanned seven seasons.

However, that seems to all pale in comparison to his accolades in volleyball. Remember, coming out of High School, despite being considered a high-level basketball prospect, Budinger was also an elite volleyball prospect, turning down several offers to play basketball at the University of Arizona.

Fast forward several years, Chase has returned to his volleyball roots where he has made a name for himself in the Beach Volleyball world and will compete in the upcoming Summer Olympics in the next few weeks. 

And because of his ability to switch professional careers and find success at the national level, naturally, he deserves to be on this list in some capacity.