There’s plenty of excitement over Yaxel Lendeborg heading into his rookie year, and even more so after the 11th overall pick led the franchise to the Summer League championship as tournament MVP.
Head coach Steve Kerr has now only added to that excitement, teasing fans with the idea of Lendeborg stepping in straight into a starting role when the Warriors face the Los Angeles Lakers on opening night at Crypto.com Arena next month.
Steve Kerr teases Yaxel Lendeborg starting role
Golden State have a clear forward spot available while six-time All-Star Jimmy Butler remains sidelined by injury. While Gui Santos stepped into that role and was the most exciting element from an otherwise underwhelming end to last season, Kerr has hinted that Lendeborg could steal that spot in a frontcourt also featuring Draymond Green and Kristaps Porzingis.
“The biggest things are figuring out who's going to start, and what's the rotation going to look like? Can Yaxel play the three with Draymond at the four, with Kristaps or Al at the 5? What would that look like? We’ll have a lot of time to determine that," Kerr told Monte Poole of NBC Sports Bay Area.
The battle between Lendeborg and Santos for a starting forward role will be one of the storylines of training camp and preseason. Not only did Lendeborg obviously play exceptionally well during summer league, but he showed the kind of traits that suggest he can step into a small forward role despite being 6’9” and listed at 250lbs.
Lendeborg’s 3-point shooting was a real highlight early in summer league, having finished at a very effective 45.9% from beyond the arc across eight games. His ball-handling and passing also suggests the 23-year-old could play at the three, averaging four assists in his 26.9 minutes during summer league.
Warriors need Yaxel Lendeborg to make instant impact
After an uninspiring summer where they missed multiple free agency targets headlined by superstar forward LeBron James, Lendeborg enters the season as the biggest addition to a team looking to return to the playoffs after finishing 10th in the Western Conference.
Combine that with his summer league performances, and the fact he’ll be 24 by opening night, and you have a player who’s not only expected to contribute in the rotation straight away, but someone who might need to be one of the team’s best players if they want to avoid a third playoff absence in the last four years.
You get a sense Kerr and the Warriors realize this, and that they’re subsequently ready to put Lendeborg in a position to thrive which might begin with a starting role on an otherwise experienced team.
