The Warriors already have as much championship pedigree as any team in the NBA, and they’re adding a little more.
By selecting Michigan forward Yaxel Lendeborg with the No. 11 pick in the 2026 draft, the Warriors are bringing in size, athleticism, defense, and a win-now talent. Lendeborg, 23, will be expected to play right away, possibly in a heavy-minutes role.
Before the pick, the ESPN broadcast showed what appeared to be a tense moment (opens in new tab)in the green room involving Mike Dunleavy, Joe Lacob, and Kirk Lacob.
At Michigan, Lendeborg led the Wolverines to the 2026 national title. The Big Ten Player of the Year starred in any role asked of him, defending up and down the positional spectrum, running pick-and-rolls as a ball handler and screener, freeing teammates with off-ball picks, making the extra passes, and crashing the glass.
Lendeborg averaged 15.1 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 3.2 assists per game while shooting 37% from 3 last year. He ranked second in the nation in box plus-minus, behind only No. 3 pick Cameron Boozer. He has LeBron James’ height and Giannis Antetokounmpo’s wingspan.
His fit with the Warriors was almost too obvious.
While Lendeborg is one of the oldest prospects in the class, he only started playing competitive basketball after high school — when his mom forced him to leave his warehouse job and pursue basketball at Arizona Western College. His unconventional development path included three junior college seasons, two years at UAB, and his star turn in Ann Arbor. Dunleavy said Lendeborg “historically is off the charts in terms of production at his age.”
“Maybe you could say his physical age is maybe not the same as his basketball age,” Dunleavy said. “So we probably see him a little bit younger from a basketball standpoint. In terms of playing organized basketball, I think he said he’s played maybe six, seven years of organized basketball, which is super young.”
Golden State selected Lendeborg after the Bucks chose Arizona combo guard Brayden Burries one pick ahead of him. Nicknamed “Dominican LeBron,” Lendeborg officially became Dunleavy’s highest pick in his tenure as the Warriors’ GM.
The Warriors had interviewed Lendeborg during last year’s pre-draft process before the forward decided to return to college. This time around, Lendeborg’s interview at the NBA Draft Combine turned heads.
“I think I noticed a different guy, frankly,” Dunleavy said. “Whether it was his experience at Michigan, his experience winning, another year of maturity, whatever it was — he was, I think he was more about the right stuff. More mature. That type of thing. I think that made us realize we’ve got to really consider this guy. He’s unique on the court, and he’s about the right things as a person. I think that was a moment we really clued in on him.”
A self-described goof, Lendeborg has a big personality. He has already joked about a budding Michigan-Michigan State rivalry with Draymond Green and told reporters on site at the draft that he used to hate Steph Curry because he was a Kyrie Irving fan. He likes to go on TikTok Live and joked that he’d have blocked new Dallas coach Dusty May’s phone number if he didn’t take a Wolverine with the ninth pick (The former Michigan coach selected Lendeborg’s college teammate, forward Morez Johnson Jr.).
The Warriors got intel from Lendeborg’s college coaches, took him out to dinner, brought him in for a workout, and watched film with him. Dunleavy believes his upbeat, “bubbly persona” will fit right into Golden State’s locker room.
With Jimmy Butler and Moses Moody expected to miss a large chunk of the 2026-27 season, Lendeborg will get ample opportunities to play immediately. Steve Kerr and the Warriors have expressed a commitment to play whomever the team ended up drafting, and Lendeborg should make that pledge easy to follow through on.
When Lendeborg worked out for the Warriors at Chase Center earlier this month, he wanted to make sure his goofy personality showed in interviews. He also sought to dispel any concerns about his age.
“If you can play, you can play,” Lendeborg said. “A lot of these younger prospects have just been in the spotlight a little bit longer than I was, been playing since they were younger. Everybody’s path is different, and every time I get on the court, I’m gonna showcase that.”
If Lendeborg can play, he’ll get the chance to prove it right away.
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