Warriors rookie Lendeborg in focus for NBA Cup Lakers clash

The Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers were scheduled to begin NBA Cup group play in San Francisco on Friday, with rookie Yaxel Lendeborg’s strong start giving Golden State another source of offence. The Lakers entered the meeting having won four straight games against the Warriors, as well as their last four visits to Chase Center.

Lendeborg was averaging 22.6 points, 9.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists through Golden State’s first five games. The Lakers, meanwhile, expected Luka Doncic to play after he sat out Wednesday’s game against the Clippers.

Lendeborg’s fast start

The Warriors selected Lendeborg with the No. 11 pick after his NCAA championship run with Michigan. He scored 12 points and grabbed three rebounds in his NBA debut against the Lakers on 21 October. Lendeborg became the first Warriors rookie to record three consecutive 20-point games since Klay Thompson in 2011-12.

Lendeborg also became the first rookie since Stephen Curry in February 2010 to record at least 30 points, 10 rebounds and five assists in a game. Across his first five career games, he joined Victor Wembanyama as the only rookies since 1993 to reach at least 100 points and 40 rebounds over that span.

Curry praised the rookie’s composure this week, saying: “He’s never really in a hurry and he’s starting to see the pictures really well.” Warriors coach Steve Kerr pointed to Lendeborg’s ability to slow the game down, draw fouls and create shots for himself or others. Golden State have been without Jimmy Butler, who is recovering from a torn ACL.

Lakers bring scoring form

The teams opened their seasons against each other in Los Angeles on 21 October, when the Lakers won 127-105. Doncic had 28 points, eight rebounds and seven assists without playing in the fourth quarter, while Walker Kessler scored 26 points on 12-for-12 shooting in his Lakers debut.

Doncic led the NBA in scoring at 36.0 points per game entering Friday’s fixture. With him in the lineup, the Lakers had scored at least 125 points in each of their first four games, a franchise first. Curry, who scored 23 points in the October meeting, came into the NBA Cup game after a season-high 44 points in Wednesday’s win over the Wolves.

What comes next in the NBA Cup

The Lakers and Warriors were placed in Group C alongside San Antonio, Portland and Sacramento. Each of the six group winners and the second-place team with the best group-stage record in each conference gets a wild-card spot. Friday’s meeting was set to give both Pacific Division rivals their first result in that group campaign.