Yaxel Lendeborg: “Rebounding is easier in the NBA”

Two Preseason games are not enough to form a complete opinion about the NBA, but Yaxel Lendeborg already seems to be settling in quite well. The Golden State Warriors rookie, after the 124-98 win over the Lakers, explained one of the things that has surprised him most in his first outings: rebounding in the NBA feels easier to him than it did in college.

It feels a lot easier to rebound here. In college, the paint was always crowded and there was always someone else coming out of nowhere to crash the boards. These guys seem lazier when it comes to rebounding. I find myself getting some of them completely uncontested, and it’s crazy

Yaxel Lendeborg

Right now, the numbers seem to back him up. The 24-year-old has grabbed nine rebounds in each of his two Preseason games against the Clippers and Lakers, enough for him to start imagining a season with several double-digit rebounding performances.

I think I’ll have a lot of games with somewhere between nine and twelve rebounds, something like that

Yaxel Lendeborg

It should be noted that his first two games were not necessarily the toughest tests. The Clippers used Isaiah Jackson in the middle, while the Lakers were without Walker Kessler, who is expected to be available for the matchup against Golden State in the Regular Season opener.

After the first game, I told myself I should be around that number of rebounds every night because of how easy it felt. Statistically, though, I want to be efficient. I think I’ve already talked about around 15 points, six rebounds and four assists. I’ll try to get to those numbers, but I don’t want to do it inefficiently, below 50, below 40

Yaxel Lendeborg

Selected with the No. 11 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft and named Summer League MVP, Lendeborg has already caught Stephen Curry’s attention and earned a spot in Steve Kerr’s starting five, despite some shooting struggles in his first appearances.