The Indiana Pacers have acquired power forward Chase Budinger from the Minnesota Timberwolves as the team tries to find suitable replacements for their forward line.
The Pacers are looking to rebuild their frontcourt with the exit of center Roy Hibbert and veteran forward David West. Hibbert was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers while West agreed to take a huge pay cut to join the San Antonio Spurs.
With the Pacers set to shift to a new fast-tempo brand of ball, the 6-foot-7 power forward could fit in perfectly provided he stays healthy.
Budinger was 44th draft pick in the 2009 NBA Draft by the Detroit Pistons but would be immediately traded to the Houston Rockets. He spent three seasons with the Rockets before being shipped to the Minnesota Timberwolves in 2012.
The Timberwolves traded their 2012 18th overall pick to Houston for Budinger, a move that was seen to reunite the former Arizona standout with coach Rick Adelman until the latter eventually went into retirement. The 27-year-old Budinger signed a three-year deal worth $15 million in 2013.
Budinger has been known to be a good three-point shooter and someone who should fit in the fast-tempo style of play that the Pacers plan to adopt, provided of course that Budinger stays healthy.
During his stint with the Timberwolves, Budinger has been hit by knee injuries. While he did show glimpses of his old self last season, averaging 6.8 points in 19 games, his playing time is expected to be severely diminished with the team loaded in the small forward position.
With the Timberwolves placing more emphasis on younger players, Budinger would have ended up spending more time on the bench had he stayed. He would have ended up playing limited minutes behind upcoming stars Andrew Wiggins and Shabazz Muhammad.
As far as Damjan Rudez is concerned, there is no certainty for now if he would be kept by the Timberwolves. However, it seems that coach Flip Saunders wants to see at what Rudez can do.
To his credit, the 29-year-old Croatian holds an impressive three point shooting clip (40.6 %) though that barely showed with the numbers he put up last season (4.8 points in 15.4 minutes).
If retained, Rudez could come off the bench and provide some outside artillery which could make life easier inside the paint for the likes of Wiggins, Muhammad and rookie Karl-Anthony Towns.
Apparently, all that would depend on the Timberwolves for now as they gear up for an interesting season in what seemingly looks like a formidable team that could give the Western conference favourites a run for their money.
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