Yaxel Lendeborg has started his NBA career with numbers that put him next to Hall of Famers. The Golden State Warriors rookie is averaging 22.6 points, 9.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists over his first five games, according to Yahoo Sports. After an 0-3 start, Golden State has won back-to-back games, and the rookie has been at the center of both wins. Yaxel Lendeborg scored 26 points against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Oct. 28, two nights after a career-high 31 against Denver.
The five-game totals behind those averages are 113 points, 46 rebounds, 20 assists, five steals and three blocks, including 11 made three-pointers. The NBA noted that his 113 points are the third-most through five career games since 2000, behind Kevin Durant and Paolo Banchero. His 113 points and 46 rebounds together make him the first player to reach both marks through five career games since Shaquille O’Neal in 1992.
Yaxel Lendeborg joins exclusive rookie company
Yaxel Lendeborg reached the record books in his fourth game. He scored a career-high 31 points with 12 rebounds and six assists on 9-of-19 shooting from the field and 12 of 13 on free throws in Golden State’s 134-114 win over the Denver Nuggets on Monday at Ball Arena. That win was Golden State’s first of the season, and it made him the fourth player in the draft lottery era, since 1985-86, to score at least 85 points with at least 35 rebounds in his first four games, according to OptaSTATS.
The other three are Patrick Ewing, David Robinson and Shaquille O’Neal, all in the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. His totals after four games were 87 points, 37 rebounds, 19 assists, four steals and two blocks, an average of 21.75 points, 9.25 rebounds and 4.75 assists per game. Through four games, he was also outpacing Luka Doncic through the first four games of Doncic’s NBA career with Dallas, according to NBC Sports Bay Area.
The Denver game also gave him a Warriors mark. He became the first Golden State rookie since Stephen Curry on Feb. 10, 2010, to record at least 30 points, 10 rebounds and five assists in a single game. He has now scored 25 or more in three straight games, the first Warriors rookie to do that since Curry, who did it in five straight games from April 4 to 11, 2010.
Yaxel Lendeborg fifth game adds more history
Yaxel Lendeborg added another line to the list on Wednesday in Minnesota. Golden State beat the Timberwolves 119-114 at Target Center, with the rookie scoring 26 points. Minnesota played without Anthony Edwards, out after knee surgery. The win moved Golden State to 2-3 after three straight losses to open the season.
With five games played, Yaxel Lendeborg is the fastest player since 1960 to record at least 100 points, 45 rebounds and 20 assists, and the sixth player in NBA history with at least 100 points, 40 rebounds and 20 assists in his first five games, according to Warriors reporter Luca Evans. He also joins Victor Wembanyama as the only rookies since 1993 with at least 100 points and 40 rebounds in their first five career games, according to SportRadar. Wembanyama had 103 points and 40 rebounds at the same mark; O’Neal had 129 points and 82 rebounds through five games in 1992-93.
The Minnesota game was not clean: Yaxel Lendeborg turned the ball over seven times, and he was unhappy about it after the game. Coach Steve Kerr called it a learning experience. “I am almost glad this happened. He feels terrible in there,” Kerr said, according to ESPN’s Anthony Slater. Kerr had praised the rookie’s poise after the Denver win, while noting there is still room for development.
Yaxel Lendeborg leads Warriors in rebounding
Yaxel Lendeborg leads the Warriors in rebounding and minutes through five games. He played 35 minutes against Minnesota. He came to Golden State as the 2025-26 Big Ten Player of the Year from Michigan. In his debut, he was tasked with guarding Doncic in a 127-105 loss to the Lakers.
The turnovers are the clear thing to clean up. For now, the numbers sit next to Ewing, Robinson and O’Neal after four games, and next to Wembanyama after five.
Golden State next faces the Lakers on Friday, with Los Angeles at 4-1. That game is also the NBA Cup Group C opener for both teams. The Warriors will try for a third straight win, after starting 0-3, with their rookie leading the team in rebounding and minutes.