Golden State Warriors coach Steve Kerr praised rookie Yaxel Lendeborg’s tools after a 131-122 loss to the Phoenix Suns on Saturday, Oct. 24, and said his defense needs the most work. “His weak-side awareness right now is very poor,” Kerr said. The loss dropped Golden State to 0-3.
Kerr’s critique came on a night when Lendeborg scored 26 points, a career high. With Draymond Green (low back soreness) and Brandin Podziemski (lower back injury management) out, the forward made 9 of 19 shots, including 6 of 11 from 3-point range, and added nine rebounds and five assists in 36 minutes. Stephen Curry and Al Horford also sat, and the Suns were led by a 43-point outburst from Devin Booker.
Kerr opened with praise, saying Lendeborg is “fearless, he’s huge, and he’s got a great skill set.” He then turned to the rim, saying “with his size, he should be one of our best defenders at the rim.”
Kerr also pointed to a play where Lendeborg launched himself into Suns center Khaman Maluach. “In college he could do that, but this is a different league,” Kerr said, adding that the rookie is getting heavy minutes and the staff will keep showing him film.
Lendeborg made his NBA debut on Oct. 21 against the Los Angeles Lakers, a 127-105 loss, and was seen trash-talking Luka Dončić. Afterward, he said he “lost all respect” for Dončić because he was “whining and complaining.” He later conceded he went “overboard” but said, “it is what it is.” Green told Evan Webeck of The California Post that he was glad to see the rookie not back down.
Through three games Lendeborg is averaging 18.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 1.3 steals in 34.3 minutes.
Golden State Is Doing Lendeborg’s Defensive Training in Real Games
Lendeborg’s offense is already holding up at NBA level, as the six made threes against Phoenix show. Kerr’s concern is on defense, at the rim, where Lendeborg’s size should be an advantage.
The rookie is averaging 34.3 minutes because so much of the rotation is missing, so his defensive lessons are happening in live games and each mistake shows up on the scoreboard. Kerr has kept those minutes high while pointing out the flaw in public. That suggests the Warriors care more about speeding up his development than about what the mistakes cost an 0-3 team.
Monday in Denver Is the First Test of Kerr’s Critique
The Warriors play the Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena on Monday, Oct. 26, the first chance to see whether Kerr’s weak-side criticism shows up in Lendeborg’s play. Curry, Podziemski, Green and Horford are all expected back, which means the rookie will be defending alongside the rotation Kerr actually wants to use.
Sources: Clark Garret Alvarez, ClutchPoints, and Thomas L. Murray, New York Post
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