Golden State Warriors rookie Yaxel Lendeborg made instant waves during and following his NBA debut. Lendeborg engaged in trash talk with Los Angeles Lakers superstar Luka Doncic and offered a scathing review of the All-NBA First Team mainstay following the Warriors' blowout loss.
Though social media has been ablaze with criticism of the way Lendeborg handled himself, Draymond Green had his rookie's back—and the Warriors thus appear to be quite happy with how the forward composed himself.
Lendeborg turned in a solid individual showing during his first career regular season game, but the Warriors couldn't prevent a 127-105 blowout loss. Doncic expectedly played a key role with 28 points, seven rebounds, six assists, and three steals.
When asked about the trash talk that seemed to transpire on the court between Doncic and himself, Lendeborg candidly stated that he lost all of the respect he once had for the two-time scoring champion.
Yaxel Lendeborg says he lost all respect for Luka Doncic from his whining:
— aly ✶ (@jinthirty) October 22, 2026
“I had a lot of respect for him, you know, just watching. I didn’t really watch the NBA much, I just watch highlights seeing him kill people all the time. But then being in there first hand, just watching…
The comments section on that and virtually every other post primarily consisted of fans chastizing Lendeborg—but Green took a different approach.
Draymond Green on Yaxel Lendeborg going at Luka Doncic: “Everyone will say the rookie learned his lesson. What he learn? The next time he see him, go at his ass again.”
— Anthony Slater (@anthonyVslater) October 22, 2026
Full soundbite pic.twitter.com/jb87fMCjJW
It may not have appealed to Doncic fans, Lakers supporters, or even other NBA viewers, but Lendeborg's approach sure seems to have been what the Warriors want from him.
Draymond Green on Yaxel Lendeborg's Luka beef: "Go at his a** again"
For what it's worth, Lendeborg played well considering it was his first career NBA game—both individually and against Doncic. He tallied 12 points, three rebounds, two assists, and a steal in 29 minutes, shooting 5-of-11 from the field and burying a three.
Lendeborg also forced Doncic to shoot 1-of-5 from the field and commit two turnovers when he was the superstar's primary defender.
Unfortunately, Doncic got to the line for six free throws and drew two fouls on the rookie. That seems to have played a part in Lendeborg's assessment of his first time playing against a player who admittedly has a reputation for spending a decent amount of time per game speaking to the referees.
Doncic is still one of the best players in the world and one of the most dominant offensive forces in NBA history, but Lendeborg's frustration isn't automatically disqualified based on inexperience.
Warriors clearly want Yaxel Lendeborg to be vocal and disruptive
Furthermore, Lendeborg has a strong case for individually backing up the trash talk, even if the post-game criticism could be perceived as going too far. Yes, Doncic scored nine points against him, but he shot 20 percent from the field and 25 percent from beyond the arc when Lendeborg was on him.
Throw in two turnovers to one assist and Lendeborg not only talked trash to Doncic, but backed his words up with his play and defensive intensity.
Moving forward, Lendeborg locking in on defense and refusing to back down from players simply due to inexperience should make the Warriors a better team. He's by no means the reason they lost, but instead a rare bright spot whose continued development could extend Stephen Curry and Green's window.
Social media may be furious, but Lendeborg appears to be doing exactly what Green and the Warriors want him to as he refuses to back down from bigger names.
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