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SAN FRANCISCO ― Golden State Warriors rookie Yaxel Lendeborg is not backing down from anyone and he’s letting everyone know it.
He takes matchups personally. That’s just him. Lendeborg plays with a chip on his shoulder and the Warriors need another guy like that.
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His name made the rounds for his interaction with Lakers star Luka Doncic in his NBA debut. Maybe you don’t like that it’s coming from a rookie, but Lendeborg is playing whatever role Golden State needs him to play.
“I’m not supposed to talk to him, something like that,” Lendeborg said about the backlash. “Like, I ain’t never been a (expletive). Come on now. He gonna say what he gonna say, I’ma say what I wanna say. I’m not afraid to talk to nobody, man. He’s not Michael Jordan. Come on now. So, I mean, it’s fun trash talk. I feel like I did kinda take it overboard in the media, but I mean, it is what it is.”
If he welcomed the Doncic matchup, other rookies should expect the same treatment. Lendeborg looks forward to matchups with members of his draft class. His first one was against the Memphis Grizzlies forward Cameron Boozer.
Boozer got the better of Lendeborg Friday, as his Grizzlies got the win. Boozer even hit the go-ahead field goal with 19.7 seconds left to give Memphis a 108-106 lead. He filled the stat sheet with 25 points and 13 rebounds for consecutive double-doubles to begin his career.
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Boozer shot 6-for-13 and was a perfect 9-for-9 on free throws. He went 4-for-7 on 3-point field goals.
Lendeborg, for his part, had a better follow to his debut against the Lakers. The Warriors rookie put up 18 points, 13 rebounds, six assists and three steals. Lendeborg, like Boozer, also had six turnovers. He shot 4-for-11, including 1-for-3 from deep. Lendeborg was aggressive in the paint and got to the line frequently, shooting 9-for-12.
“(Boozer) played a great game today,” Lendeborg said Friday. “We were both on the bad end with the turnovers but, I mean, we both ended up with double-doubles. It was a fun matchup. We didn’t really get to guard each other too much, but he did take advantage of the matchup when I was on him and did…
Source link : https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/warriors-rookie-yaxel-lendeborg-put-232318035.html
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Publish date : 2026-10-24 23:23:00
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