Golden State Warriors head coach Steve Kerr has praised Yaxel Lendeborg’s fearlessness, size and skill set after the rookie’s first NBA performances, while making it clear that the young forward still has plenty of room to improve defensively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A classic case of carrot and stick. Let’s start with the praise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“He’s fearless, he’s huge, and he’s got a great skill set. He can dribble, pass and shoot.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Kerr’s confidence in the rookie is evident, having put him straight into the starting lineup from the opening game of the regular season.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“Yaxel has the ability to create shots for us, so we’re definitely going to turn to him more often. Putting Steph and Dray in that situation over and over puts an enormous amount of pressure on them. Those two guys running the pick-and-roll will always be our best weapon, but Yaxel is a very talented player we can absolutely rely on, and all those repetitions will help him a lot.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then came the criticism, focused on his defensive play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“Right now, his weak-side awareness is very poor… The biggest thing is just continuing to learn the NBA. The defensive side is where I want to see the most improvement, though. With his size (and his incredibly long arms…), he should be one of our best defenders at the rim. Right now, though, he’s not reading the weak side well. That’s an area he really needs to improve.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The No. 11 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft has averaged 18.7 points, 8.3 rebounds and 4.3 assists through three games, shooting 44% from the field, 44% from three-point range and 66% from the free-throw line.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Here’s Lendeborg in action against the Suns:<\/p>\n\n\n\n