The Sacramento Kings may already be staring at one of the night’s biggest “what ifs” after seeing Yaxel Lendeborg up close in preseason.
Golden State grabbed Lendeborg with the 11th pick, and he wasted no time making the Kings think about what could have been. In the Warriors’ preseason matchup with Sacramento, he started at power forward, logged almost 24 minutes, and delivered 23 points, 10 rebounds, six assists, two steals and a block while shooting 71.4% from the field.
That kind of line is exactly why Lendeborg is being talked about as a possible steal of the 2026 NBA Draft. If he keeps producing like that once the games count, he’ll be in the Rookie of the Year conversation before long.
For the Kings, though, the story is not only about what they passed on. Sacramento went into the draft with a clear goal: Darius Acuff Jr. They took the rookie point guard seventh overall as part of a rebuild built around young talent, and so far that choice looks promising.
Acuff is still settling in, but his preseason play has already stood out. If this is what he looks like before fully hitting NBA speed, it is easy to picture a much bigger leap ahead. He could wind up as a legitimate Rookie of the Year contender himself.
He’s also beginning to click with his teammates, especially Domantas Sabonis. That pairing is showing real chemistry on the floor, even if defense is not exactly where the two will make their name. That is where Dylan Cardwell and Jonathan Mogbo come into play.
Still, when Lendeborg was torching Sacramento, it had to sting a little. The Kings selected Acuff seventh, while Golden State got Lendeborg at 11th, which means Sacramento had the chance to go a different direction.
In the end, though, the Kings were not the only team that missed him. Twenty-eight other clubs passed as well. And with Acuff already giving Sacramento reasons to feel good about its draft night, this is not exactly a disaster.
As for the Warriors, the bigger question is whether they can make the most of Lendeborg. If not, they may have fumbled another young player right in front of everyone.
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