Yaxel Lendeborg is exactly who the Warriors needed.
They didn’t get Giannis Antetokounmpo. They didn’t get LeBron James. Their offseason was widely viewed as underwhelming.
But Lendeborg has surpassed expectations and is helping prop the window open for Steph Curry and Draymond Green to play meaningful basketball this season.
The Warriors chose to draft Lendeborg with the No. 11 pick because they needed someone who could contribute right away. He had just carried Michigan to an NCAA championship. They hoped the 24-year-old would be NBA-ready.
Their gamble paid off.
Lendeborg is averaging 22 points on 47.5% shooting, 9.2 rebounds, four assists and one steal for the Warriors, who have won two games in a row to improve to 2-3 before Friday night’s game against the Lakers.
The 6-foot-9 forward is the first player since Shaquille O’Neal to average at least 20 points and nine rebounds in his first five games.
He joined Patrick Ewing, David Robinson and O’Neal as the only players in the draft lottery era to have at least 85 points and 35 rebounds in their first four games.
“The Golden State Warriors [have] found the next face of the franchise,” Draymond Green recently said on his podcast, “The Draymond Green Show.”
With Jimmy Butler and Moses Moody sidelined for the first few months of the season because of injuries and Kristaps Porzingis out indefinitely because of an undisclosed health-related issue, the Warriors have desperately needed Lendeborg.
He has answered the call with an early Rookie of the Year campaign, giving Curry a reliable second scorer.
When Butler returns, the Warriors could be a formidable team. If they can make the playoffs, a lineup of Curry, Green, Lendeborg and Butler could make some noise.
Lendeborg is skilled. He’s unafraid, so much so that he’s willing to trash talk Luka Doncic and then say that he “lost all respect for him” because of his “whining.” And he’s meeting the moment.
It’s a giant sigh of relief for Curry, who’s turning 39 this season and wants to play competitive basketball after carrying the Warriors to four championships over eight years from 2015-2022 before they failed to advance past the second round of the playoffs the last four seasons.
Lendeborg is quickly making a name for himself.
And he’s making things interesting for Curry, who scored 44 points, including a 19-point second quarter, to carry the Warriors to a 119-114 win over the Timberwolves on Wednesday.
Lendeborg wants to help make those stunning performances matter.
He wants to make sure the league’s modern-day dynasty remains relevant.
He wants to be Curry’s wingman, especially after witnessing his magic in person for the first time.
“I caught myself shaking my head like, wow, a couple times,” Lendeborg told reporters Wednesday. “But once he got out the game, it’s like this is my opportunity to help him out. Help his [greatness] be worthwhile.”
