From underdog story to homegrown hope: Yaxel Lendeborg’s journey to Warriors

From underdog story to homegrown hope: Yaxel Lendeborg’s journey to Warriors originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Eyes, attention and major expectations will be cast upon Yaxel Lendeborg throughout his rookie year. 

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Lendeborg, taken No. 11 in the 2026 NBA Draft, is the Warriors’ highest pick since selecting Jonathan Kuminga seventh overall in 2021, and the highest yet under general manager Mike Dunleavy. But Lendeborg is a much different prospect than Kuminga was, and he’s entering a vastly different situation than Kuminga stepped into. 

When the Warriors picked Kuminga, they were gambling on an 18-year-old who produced inefficient stats in 13 games for the G League Ignite. Kuminga turns 24 on Oct. 6. Lendeborg, before ever playing an NBA regular-season game, turns 24 on Sept. 30, six days before Kuminga’s birthday. 

There’s a trust in choosing Lendeborg to champion the next phase of the Warriors. He isn’t a teenager. He’s a man stepping into an adult world of basketball, surrounded by stars trying to hide their gray hairs and squeeze out their last ounces of glory. 

Experience isn’t an issue for Lendeborg; it’s an advantage. He played 190 total games in college. The final 40 were a storybook season that ended with winning a national championship for the University of Michigan. The first 78 were at a junior college he had never heard of and never wanted to be at, until everything clicked wearing an Arizona Western College Matadors jersey. 

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“Oh man, it’s a crazy, crazy journey,” Lendeborg said in response to NBC Sports Bay Area after his California Classic debut at Chase Center with the Warriors in July. 

It’s safe to say Lendeborg is the Warriors’ newest homegrown hope for a bright future. It’s just as safe to say he’s also their newest underdog story to know.

Winding up at Arizona Western wasn’t his decision; it was his mom’s. Lendeborg cried when his mom told him he was going to Arizona Western. He cried during his own going-away party, on…

Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/underdog-story-homegrown-hope-yaxel-104540978.html

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Publish date : 2026-09-22 10:45:00

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