By Rory Maher | at July 18, 2026 3:21 pm
The Warriors selected former Michigan forward Yaxel Lendeborg with the 11th overall pick in June’s draft. The 23-year-old displayed his versatility during both the California Classic and Las Vegas Summer Leagues, averaging 13.8 points, 6.7 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 1.3 steals in 25.8 minutes per game across six appearances.
Lendeborg told Ron Kroichick of The San Francisco Chronicle he’d grade his summer performance as a C-plus or B-minus, as he struggled defensively at times and acknowledged he needs to get in better shape ahead of his rookie season.
“I feel like I could have been a lot better, a lot more aggressive,” Lendeborg said. “But it’s a new system and new team, I don’t want to be overbearing and overplay my part.”
As Kroichick writes, Lendeborg appears ready to play an immediate rotation role and could be competing with Gui Santos for a spot in the starting lineup while Jimmy Butler and Moses Moody recover from major leg injuries.
“I just want to be somebody who can provide an instant spark right away, and I feel like I’m capable of doing that, especially with the injuries,” Lendeborg said. “We have a lot of injuries at my position, so I feel like that really gives me the perfect opportunity to play right away, or just show the guys I’m going to help right away.
“I haven’t really spoken much to the Warriors about that — I don’t want to be demanding minutes and stuff. So hopefully they see I’m deserving of the chance, and I can make the most of it.”
Here’s more from Golden State’s lottery pick:
Lendeborg also told Kroichick he felt apprehensive upon hearing Draymond Green say on his podcast that he wants to “rein in the rookie a little bit” following what Green referred to as Lendeborg’s “pointless” recruiting pitch to LeBron James, which occurred during a live stream interview (YouTube link). “I got a little nervous,” Lendeborg said, laughing. “I don’t know what he’s talking about, man. He could be hinting at a lot of different things. Hopefully it’s not the (rookie) hazing — I hope we keep that at a minimum. I hope it’s just like, ‘Yeah, I got you. This is what you should and shouldn’t do.’ So I’m a little worried, but hopefully everything goes well.”
Speaking to Tomer Azarly of ClutchPoints, Lendeborg discussed attending the rookie transition program and what he learned from the event, getting “all the nerves out” during Summer League, and navigating his rookie year, among other topics.
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