Draymond Green is already looking well beyond the current era in Golden State, and in his mind, the Warriors may not need to search far for their next cornerstone.
On a recent episode of The Draymond Green Show with Taylor Rooks, Green made it clear he sees rookie Yaxel Lendeborg as a real candidate to become the franchise’s next face. Green said he was paying close attention during an open practice, pointing to a moment that told him plenty about how Lendeborg carries himself with fans.
“We’re gonna talk Rookie of the Year next, that’s my pick. We had open practice, and these are just the types of things I pay attention to.
We do the signing, this dude went up in the crowd, and the fans loved it. They were going crazy,” Green said.
“I don’t even think he realized what he was doing … he’s in the tunnel signing autographs. Steve [Kerr] has to go get him, literally, Steve has to walk over there and go get him.”
Green also said he told Lendeborg to keep doing exactly that, because building that kind of connection matters - the same kind of presence Stephen Curry has long had in Golden State.
And it isn’t just the personality stuff. Lendeborg backed up Green’s praise with his preseason production, appearing in all five games for the Warriors and putting up 15.6 points, 7.4 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 1.2 steals per game. He shot 56.9 percent from the field, 43.8 percent from 3-point range and 65 percent from the free-throw line.
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