Timberwolves trade Chase Budinger to Pacers for Damjan Rudez

The Minnesota Timberwolves traded Chase Budinger to the Indiana Pacers for Damjan Rudez, the Timberwolves announced Sunday.

The Timberwolves finally found a home for Budinger, who struggled through knee trouble in his two years in Minnesota. He was entering the third year of his three-year, $15 million deal with the Timberwolves and had requested a trade because he had fallen in the depth chart behind youngsters Andrew Wiggins and Shabazz Muhammad.

Budinger, entering his seventh season, will join a new-look Pacers squad with Roy Hibbert and David West leaving in the offseason. But George Hill, Monta Ellis and Paul George make a nice core in the Eastern Conference. Budinger, who averaged 6.8 points in 19 minutes per game for Minnesota last season, could be a boost for the Pacers if he can find a way to stay healthy.

If Rudez, 29, stays with the Wolves, he'll add solid shooting to a team that needs it. He hit 40.6 percent from behind the three-point line with the Pacers last year and averaged 4.8 points in 15 minutes per game. However, the Timberwolves might not have much room for the 6'10 stretch four with Karl-Anthony Towns, Kevin Garnett, Adreian Payne and Nemanja Bjelica already on the roster.