As mentioned earlier, Budinger is taking an official visit to UCLA this weekend, and so is James Keefe, who has already committed to the Bruins and is on the same AAU team as Budinger. The Daily News has an article discussing the trip and Budinger's recruitment in general. The only comment from Budinger in the story:

I'm looking for a good basketball program, a good school with a strong education. UCLA's style (of play), I like it, but I like (to play) a little more up and down.

Hmmm, not exactly a ringing endorsement, but we'll see what happens. If playing "up and down" is what he wants, I believe UCLA will suit him just fine, as we pushed the ball much more last year than I expected, and next year should be more of the same. With our best half-court option (Dijon Thompson) gone, our best offensive players being on the perimeter, and key members of our rotation being freshman or sophomores, it would make sense that we try to get out and run to get easy baskets instead of walking the ball up the floor and trying to execute against a set defense on a regular basis.

Another item mentioned in the article is that Budinger has narrowed his college choice to UCLA, USC, and Arizona. Also, because Budinger is an accomplished high school volleyball player, he plans to meet with Al Scates this weekend.