The Golden State Warriors officially obtained the 11th overall pick on Sunday after failing to move up in the lottery, and they've already been strongly linked to one of the most divisive lottery prospects ahead of next month's draft.
Yaxel Lendeborg is ready to make an NBA impact from day one next season, but that's because the 6'9" forward will start as a 24-year-old following a six-year career at Arizona Western, UAB and most recently Michigan.
Warriors already being linked to Yaxel Lendeborg after draft lottery
It's not surprising that Lendeborg is being associated with the Warriors given their championship aspirations, particularly after officially re-signing Steve Kerr to a two-year contract extension on Saturday.
Golden State want to build a more competitive team around 38-year-old Stephen Curry, and Lendeborg fits the timeline as a ready-made contributor who just proved he can impact winning by leading Michigan to the NCAA championship.
In the wake of the the franchise landing the 11th overall pick, social media has been rife with speculation that they'll will have interest in Lendeborg should he be available, including from Warriors insiders Bonta Hill and Danny Emerman.
The Yaxel to Golden State chatter is so loud that it’s almost bound to not happen.
— TheWarriorsTalk (@TheWarriorsTalk) May 10, 2026
The Warriors stay at 11. The ping pong balls didn’t bounce their way.
— Danny Emerman (@DannyEmerman) May 10, 2026
My favorites in that range: Yaxel Lendeborg, Aday Mara, Dailyn Swain, Brayden Burries, Labaron Philon.
If the Warriors keep the 11th pick, I could see Yaxel Lendeborg being their guy.
— Bonta Hill (@BontaHill) May 10, 2026
Yaxel fall to the Warriors?
— Ricky G (@jrichardgoodman) May 10, 2026
With Jimmy Butler and Moses Moody set to start next season on the sidelines, and having traded Jonathan Kuminga to the Atlanta Hawks at February's deadline, there's even an argument to be made that Lendeborg could start for the Warriors early on depending on what they do with the roster, and specifically the frontcourt across free agency and on the trade market.
Lendeborg averaged 14.4 points, 7.0 rebounds and 3.3 assists on an efficient 50.6% from the floor and 34.3% from 3-point range with the Wolverines this season, having battled through an MCL sprain to score 13 points in the championship game against UConn.
Warriors could look at post Stephen Curry era with 11th overall pick
Golden State should have argaubly taken an experienced, older prospect like Lendeborg five years ago when they were closer to championship contention and Curry was younger, rather than take risky, high upside swings on James Wiseman and Jonathan Kuminga.
But with Curry now closer to the end of his career, there's an argument that this is the time to look at the future and just take the best available prospect, even if they aren't a ready-made rotation contributor.
That's what makes the Warriors' approach so interesting assuming they keep the 11th pick, and so too how teams evaluate Lendeborg's ability to contribute right away with the unappealing nature of taking an older prospect in the lottery.
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