Scheduled
Toronto Raptors at Philadelphia 76ers
2026-27 · Regular season
Kevin Durant calls Yaxel Lendeborg ‘a problem’ after the Warriors rookie scores 25 with Stephen Curry out in Houston
With Stephen Curry out after five minutes, Warriors rookie Yaxel Lendeborg scored a game-high 25 with 10 rebounds in a 115-108 loss in Houston. Kevin Durant called him “a matchup problem” and sent him a signed jersey, and Draymond Green said Lendeborg has to realize he is often the best player on the floor.
In this article
Yaxel Lendeborg scored 25 points with 10 rebounds on Wednesday night, carrying the Golden State Warriors for most of a game they played without Stephen Curry. The Houston Rockets still won 115-108, and afterward Kevin Durant, who traded baskets with Lendeborg in the first half, had a short review of the rookie: “It’s a problem.”
Curry hit a three in the first quarter, grabbed his right side and left the game after five and a half minutes with right abdominal soreness. He did not return and left the arena during the second half for an MRI. With Golden State down 35-20 after one quarter, Lendeborg scored 11 points in the second, and the Warriors cut a 15-point deficit to one before going into halftime behind 56-51.
Lendeborg’s first half in Houston: 18 points, eight rebounds and two steals. Video posted by the Warriors on X.
25 and 10, and a game-high in scoring
Lendeborg finished 9-of-19 from the field, 2-of-7 from three and 5-of-8 from the free-throw line in 36 minutes, with 10 rebounds and two steals. His 25 points led both teams. Brandin Podziemski added 22 for Golden State, while Durant had 20 and Alperen Sengun 19 with 13 rebounds and nine assists for Houston.
Houston slowed him down after halftime, when he scored seven points. The Warriors got within 88-85 early in the fourth quarter, but the Rockets scored the next eight points and made six of their 10 threes in the quarter. Golden State’s eight-game winning streak ended, and it fell to 8-4. Houston is 9-3.
Durant: ‘A matchup problem’
Durant, who was asked about Lendeborg in his on-court interview after the game, said Houston spent the second half trying to contain him. “Yaxel was playing great ball,” Durant said. “He kept them in the game in the first half, and we just tried to do everything we can to stop him in that second half.”
“It’s a problem. You know, a matchup problem,” he added. “Being that tall and being able to get that skill too, man, I’m excited to see his career unfold and, you know, grateful that I got to play against him tonight.”
Durant on Lendeborg after the game. Video posted by The Hoop Central on X.
Durant went further in the locker room, according to Will Guillory. “I love his game. He’s a skilled big that can play 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 on the offensive side of the ball. He can shoot it. He can handle it. He’s strong, long and athletic,” Durant said. “A winner. He won in college. He’s been through a lot of adversity. … He came here fully grown and he’s ready for anything that’s thrown at him. It was fun to play against him.”
A signed Durant jersey was also waiting at Lendeborg’s locker after the game, Dalton Johnson and Luca Evans reported. Lendeborg was still doing interviews on the court, so reporters did not see him find it.
Green: ‘You’re probably the best player on the floor’
Draymond Green said the game turned for Golden State in the second quarter when Lendeborg realized that, with Curry gone and Durant on the bench, nobody on the court was better than him.
“The thing that he’s gonna have to learn to understand is, alright, Steph wasn’t out there, KD was off the court — you look around, you’re probably the best player on the floor. Regardless of team,” Green said. “And so I think there was a point where he realized, like, ‘Oh, ding, ding, ding.’ And he started attacking and the game flipped for us.”
“I think that’s something that he’s gonna have to realize really fast,” Green added. “There’ll be oftentimes where he could possibly be the best player on the floor, regardless of the team. And we need him to show that, and he doesn’t have a problem doing it.”
Green on Lendeborg after the game. Video posted by Luca Evans on X.
Kerr and the ‘non-Yaxel minutes’
Steve Kerr said Lendeborg “really took a lot of the offense on his shoulders” and is “obviously very capable.” Twelve games into his career, the Warriors coach was already being asked about how the team plays when the rookie sits. Kerr gave him a short rest to open the fourth quarter.
Kerr did not blame any one player. “The whole thing is, it’s as a group that we win and lose,” he said. “I don’t think there was anything individually, like we needed this guy to do better or that guy to do better. I just felt like we never quite got control of the game.” He pointed to the 8-0 Houston run after Golden State cut the lead to three, and the fourth-quarter threes from Reed Sheppard and Fred VanVleet.
Kerr on the Warriors’ minutes without Lendeborg on the floor. Video posted by Luca Evans on X.
No. 11 pick, No. 1 on the Rookie Ladder
Lendeborg, 24, was the 11th pick in the 2026 draft out of Michigan, after junior college at Arizona Western and two seasons at UAB. He has started all 12 games and is averaging 21.7 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.7 assists while shooting 51.8% from the field and 42.6% from three. On Wednesday, before the Houston game, he moved to No. 1 in the league’s weekly Kia Rookie Ladder.
He may now have to carry more. Kerr said after the game that his concern about Curry is “high,” and the Warriors are waiting on the MRI results. For the latest on Curry, read: Stephen Curry leaves Houston for an MRI on his abdomen. Golden State continues its five-game road trip at San Antonio on Friday at 9:30 p.m. ET, which is 4:30 a.m. Saturday in Cairo, against a Spurs team that has won 10 straight.
Join the discussion
0 commentsTalk basketball. Keep it respectful. You can use a name or stay Anonymous. Comments publish immediately.
Be the first to start the conversation.