Lendeborg and Podziemski bounce back to show Warriors what they can offer

Playing in an NBA game for the first time is a stressful experience for every rookie, even if the game doesn't actually count towards a record. Yaxel Lendeborg felt that nervousness big time in his first outing with the Golden State Warriors on Monday in Hawaii, going just 1-for-6 from the floor for four points. So after the game, the 24-year-old decided to use the unique veteran savviness around him by texting Steph Curry and Draymond Green for some guidance.

His teammates and coach haven't stopped imploring him to be relentless on offense — he mentioned postgame that Kerr, Steph and Draymond, along with family members and friends, have repeated that to him "like 50 times" over the last two days. Still, the rookie, who's never really had that score-first mentality, said he was a little bit scared to be aggressive early on. The two franchise cornerstones told the rookie they believed in him and that he had room for mistakes. Getting those answers from a couple of Hall of Famers surely helped him build up his confidence and shift his mindset.

Yaxel Lendeborg looked as advertised in his second game

Steve Kerr's main takeaway from Lendeborg's first outing was a specific play where the rookie decided to dump the ball off instead of rising up to get a bucket. Safe to say he learns from his mistakes quickly. The 6-foot-9 forward was aggressive at the rim all night long, powering through defenders in transition and drawing a couple of fouls for and-one opportunities. He sprinkled in a couple of smooth-looking threes, including one step-back in the second quarter, en route to a game-high 17 points on 11 shots.

"The way he attacked in transition, a couple of times in pick-and-rolls, we need him to be a scorer, we need him to get us easy buckets at the rim, and he did a great job of that tonight," Kerr said of Lendeborg's performance.

The offense is basically a guarantee with Lendeborg. The challenge for the rookie will be to develop instincts on the defensive end, which can be tricky for a player transitioning from college ball to the NBA. Two games in, he rates himself a "five out of 10" defensively.

"I get buckets regardless," he said during his on-court postgame interview. "Just being able to figure out where I got to be defensively, what rotation I got to make, something I've been talking with Draymond a lot just to figure it out."

One of the early traits that has emerged early on from Lendeborg is his willingness to learn and ask questions. Both Green and Curry, experts in their respective fields, have already been peppered with questions. He's constantly asking his coach what he can do better to help the team and doesn't take anything personally, Kerr said.

"I can coach him hard and he embraces it and try to do whatever we're asking," Kerr said of Lendeborg's coachability. "He's a really fun, fun guy to coach."

One aspect of the game Lendeborg won't need much coaching in is his rebounding. The rookie has led all players in rebounds in each of his first two games with the franchise, grabbing nine of them in 19 minutes against the Clippers on Monday and nine again in 21 minutes in his home debut. After averaging 9.5 rebounds across three seasons at UAB and Michigan, rebounding in the NBA doesn't seem particularly demanding for the 6-foot-9 young man.

"I feel like it's a lot easier to get rebounds here," he said about rebounding in the NBA compared to in college."I feel like these guys are more lazy to get rebounds. I feel like I'm going to have a lot of rebounding games where I'm at 9 to 12 of that range."

With Al Horford in street clothes due to a minor injury, Kerr used Lendeborg at the five to open the third quarter. Lendeborg does have some experience at the position, playing some bully ball at UAB and being used as a stretch five last season at Michigan.

With the Warriors, he offers considerable spacing when surrounded by shooters. The question is whether they can get enough stops on the other end. Given Porzingis' uncertain health situation and Horford's limited playing time, Kerr and his staff might not have a choice but to deploy him there in spurts. Having a hybrid five with good instincts who can pass, dribble and shoot with no hesitation isn't a luxury the Warriors have enjoyed often in the last decade or so, if ever.

"It's just great to have a 6-10 guy, who can play basketball at that level," Kerr said of the experience of using him at center. "You have a lot of options with him for sure."

Brandin Podziemski bounced back after rough first outing

Along with Lendeborg ramping up to make his NBA debut, one of the talking points of the camp was Brandin Podziemski's evolution. He was a standout in the team's first scrimmage in Hawaii but didn't carry that momentum into his first game of the season, as the young guard put up just seven points on 2-of-10 shooting in Hawaii against the Clippers.

Against the other L.A. team, Podziemski implemented what he said he aimed to improve entering his fourth season in the league. In his media day press conference, he mentioned his desire to shoot more threes and drive to the basket more often. Here is how the Warriors' first two possessions of the game went: a Podziemski four-point play, a Podziemski layup at the rim.

Podziemski finished with 16 points in 19 minutes and did it in a variety of ways. Multiple cuts to the basket, a three, a floater, a handful of layups. He looked a lot more like the player his coaches and teammates described in camp. Now, it's all about consistency for the young guard. Can he sustain that level of play, or will he be on again and off again like he was at times last season?

For the Warriors this season, Podziemski and Lendeborg will play a big role in taking some of the offensive burden off Curry's shoulders. In an ideal world, the two would perform together like they did against the Lakers — they combined for 33 points on 14-of-22 shooting. One of them contributing night in and night out would be a good start. At least until Batman's Robin comes back.

Not only was that game the Warriors' second preseason contest, but it also came against a Lakers team deploying its second/third-unit players. On Wednesday night in Portland, the Warriors will be the ones facing that predicament, as Curry, Green, Lendeborg, Podziemski, Al Horford, De'Anthony Melton, Gui Santos, Georges Niang and Gary Payton II won't be part of the trip to Oregon.

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