Marcus D. Smith, USA TODAY Tue, October 27, 2026 at 6:23 AM UTC · 3 min read About Our Ads Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement The Golden State Warriors got their first win of the season on the road against the Denver Nuggets in a 134-114 victory behind a career night from rookie Yaxel Lendeborg.
Lendeborg led all scorers in a game that featured Stephen Curry, Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic. The Warriors ' 24-year-old rookie put up a double-double, giving Golden State 31 points, 12 rebounds, six assists and a block.
The No. 11 overall pick in the 2026 NBA Draft shot relatively well from everywhere on the court, except from deep.
Lendeborg shot 9-of-19, including 1-of-8 on 3-point field goals. He's continued to adapt to the NBA game, staying aggressive and getting easy opportunities at the free throw line. The rookie finished 12-of-13 from the charity stripe.
Signature shoes, rare colorways and player exclusives help NBA stars stand out this season. Take a look at some of the coolest sneakers being worn around the league. A close up of the Li-Ning sneakers worn by Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors during their game against the Memphis Grizzlies at Chase Center on October 23, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Ezra Shaw, Getty Images) A close up of the Nike sneakers worn by Cameron Boozer of the Memphis Grizzlies during the first half of their game against the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center on October 23, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Ezra Shaw, Getty Images) A detailed view of of the shoes worn by Jaylen Brown of the Philadelphia 76ers during the second quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Xfinity Mobile Arena on October 22, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Emilee Chinn, Getty Images) A detailed view of shoes on guard Tyrese Maxey of the Philadelphia 76ers during the first quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Xfinity Mobile Arena on October 22, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Emilee Chinn, Getty Images) A detailed view of LeBron James' of the Philadelphia 76ers shoes during the first quarter of a game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Xfinity Mobile Arena on October 22, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Emilee Chinn, Getty Images) A detailed view of the basketball shoes of Trae Young of the Washington Wizards against the Milwaukee Bucks during the second half at Capital One Arena on October 21, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Patrick Smith, Getty Images) The shoes of Yang Hansen of the Portland Trail Blazers are seen during the second half against the Phoenix Suns at Moda Center on October 21, 2026 in Portland, Oregon. (Steph Chambers, Getty Images) The shoes of Devin Booker of the Phoenix Suns are seen during the second half against the Portland Trail Blazers at Moda Center on October 21, 2026 in Portland, Oregon. (Steph Chambers, Getty Images) The shoes of Ja Morant of the Portland Trail Blazers are seen during the first half against the Phoenix Suns at Moda Center on October 21, 2026 in Portland, Oregon. (Steph Chambers, Getty Images) Detail of the Skechers sneakers worn by Julius Randle of the Brooklyn Nets during the first half against the Charlotte Hornets at Barclays Center on October 21, 2026 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Sarah Stier, Getty Images) A detailed view of the shoes of Keaton Wagler of the Los Angeles Clippers before the game against the Sacramento Kings at Intuit Dome on October 21, 2026 in Inglewood, California. (Luke Hales, Getty Images) A detailed view of Kyrie Irving of the Dallas Mavericks shoes prior to the game against the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center on October 21, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Kenneth Richmond, Getty Images) A detailed view of Cooper Flagg of the Dallas Mavericks shoes prior to the game against the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center on October 21, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Kenneth Richmond, Getty Images) A detailed view of LeBron James of the Philadelphia 76ers shoes during the third quarter of the game against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on October 20, 2026 in New York City. (Sarah Stier, Getty Images) Shoes worn by Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics against the Detroit Pistons at Little Caesars Arena on October 20, 2026 in Detroit, Michigan. (Gregory Shamus, Getty Images) A detailed view of Jalen Brunson of the New York Knicks shoes during the third quarter of the game against the Philadelphia 76ers at Madison Square Garden on October 20, 2026 in New York City. (Sarah Stier, Getty Images) A close up of the sneakers worn by Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors during the second half of their preseason game against the Portland Trail Blazers at Chase Center on October 16, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Ezra Shaw, Getty Images) A close up of the sneakers worn by Yaxel Lendeborg of the Golden State Warriors during the first half of their preseason game against the Portland Trail Blazers at Chase Center on October 16, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Ezra Shaw, Getty Images) A close up of the sneakers worn by Ja Morant of the Portland Trail Blazers during the first half of their preseason game against the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center on October 16, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Ezra Shaw, Getty Images) A detailed view of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder shoes during the game against the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center on October 15, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Kenneth Richmond, Getty Images) A detailed view of the KD19 shoes worn by Quadir Copeland of the Houston Rockets during the game against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Toyota Center on October 15, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Kenneth Richmond, Getty Images) A detailed view of the shoes of Luka Doncic of the Los Angeles Lakers during the first quarter against the Sacramento Kings in a preseason game at Crypto.com Arena on October 08, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Luke Hales, Getty Images) Cade Cunningham of the Detroit Pistons shoes during a pre season game against the Phoenix Suns at Little Caesars Arena on October 05, 2026 in Detroit, Michigan. (Gregory Shamus, Getty Images) A view of the shoes worn by Donovan Mitchell of the Cleveland Cavaliers during Cleveland Cavaliers Media Day at Rocket Arena on September 28, 2026 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Nick Cammett, Getty Images) A detailed view of Kevin Durant of the Houston Rockets shoes as he poses for a photo during the Houston Rockets Media Day at Hilton Americas-Houston on September 22, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Kenneth Richmond, Getty Images) 1 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season Signature shoes, rare colorways and player exclusives help NBA stars stand out this season. Take a look at some of the coolest sneakers being worn around the league. A close up of the Li-Ning sneakers worn by Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors during their game against the Memphis Grizzlies at Chase Center on October 23, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Ezra Shaw, Getty Images) 1 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season Signature shoes, rare colorways and player exclusives help NBA stars stand out this season. Take a look at some of the coolest sneakers being worn around the league. A close up of the Li-Ning sneakers worn by Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors during their game against the Memphis Grizzlies at Chase Center on October 23, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Ezra Shaw, Getty Images) 2 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season A close up of the Nike sneakers worn by Cameron Boozer of the Memphis Grizzlies during the first half of their game against the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center on October 23, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Ezra Shaw, Getty Images) 3 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season A detailed view of of the shoes worn by Jaylen Brown of the Philadelphia 76ers during the second quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Xfinity Mobile Arena on October 22, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Emilee Chinn, Getty Images) 4 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season A detailed view of shoes on guard Tyrese Maxey of the Philadelphia 76ers during the first quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Xfinity Mobile Arena on October 22, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Emilee Chinn, Getty Images) 5 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season A detailed view of LeBron James' of the Philadelphia 76ers shoes during the first quarter of a game against the Cleveland Cavaliers at Xfinity Mobile Arena on October 22, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Emilee Chinn, Getty Images) 6 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season A detailed view of the basketball shoes of Trae Young of the Washington Wizards against the Milwaukee Bucks during the second half at Capital One Arena on October 21, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Patrick Smith, Getty Images) 7 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season The shoes of Yang Hansen of the Portland Trail Blazers are seen during the second half against the Phoenix Suns at Moda Center on October 21, 2026 in Portland, Oregon. (Steph Chambers, Getty Images) 8 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season The shoes of Devin Booker of the Phoenix Suns are seen during the second half against the Portland Trail Blazers at Moda Center on October 21, 2026 in Portland, Oregon. (Steph Chambers, Getty Images) 9 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season The shoes of Ja Morant of the Portland Trail Blazers are seen during the first half against the Phoenix Suns at Moda Center on October 21, 2026 in Portland, Oregon. (Steph Chambers, Getty Images) 10 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season Detail of the Skechers sneakers worn by Julius Randle of the Brooklyn Nets during the first half against the Charlotte Hornets at Barclays Center on October 21, 2026 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. (Sarah Stier, Getty Images) 11 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season A detailed view of the shoes of Keaton Wagler of the Los Angeles Clippers before the game against the Sacramento Kings at Intuit Dome on October 21, 2026 in Inglewood, California. (Luke Hales, Getty Images) 12 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season A detailed view of Kyrie Irving of the Dallas Mavericks shoes prior to the game against the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center on October 21, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Kenneth Richmond, Getty Images) 13 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season A detailed view of Cooper Flagg of the Dallas Mavericks shoes prior to the game against the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center on October 21, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Kenneth Richmond, Getty Images) 14 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season A detailed view of LeBron James of the Philadelphia 76ers shoes during the third quarter of the game against the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden on October 20, 2026 in New York City. (Sarah Stier, Getty Images) 15 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season Shoes worn by Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics against the Detroit Pistons at Little Caesars Arena on October 20, 2026 in Detroit, Michigan. (Gregory Shamus, Getty Images) 16 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season A detailed view of Jalen Brunson of the New York Knicks shoes during the third quarter of the game against the Philadelphia 76ers at Madison Square Garden on October 20, 2026 in New York City. (Sarah Stier, Getty Images) 17 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season A close up of the sneakers worn by Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors during the second half of their preseason game against the Portland Trail Blazers at Chase Center on October 16, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Ezra Shaw, Getty Images) 18 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season A close up of the sneakers worn by Yaxel Lendeborg of the Golden State Warriors during the first half of their preseason game against the Portland Trail Blazers at Chase Center on October 16, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Ezra Shaw, Getty Images) 19 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season A close up of the sneakers worn by Ja Morant of the Portland Trail Blazers during the first half of their preseason game against the Golden State Warriors at Chase Center on October 16, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Ezra Shaw, Getty Images) 20 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season A detailed view of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander of the Oklahoma City Thunder shoes during the game against the Houston Rockets at Toyota Center on October 15, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Kenneth Richmond, Getty Images) 21 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season A detailed view of the KD19 shoes worn by Quadir Copeland of the Houston Rockets during the game against the Oklahoma City Thunder at Toyota Center on October 15, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Kenneth Richmond, Getty Images) 22 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season A detailed view of the shoes of Luka Doncic of the Los Angeles Lakers during the first quarter against the Sacramento Kings in a preseason game at Crypto.com Arena on October 08, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Luke Hales, Getty Images) 23 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season Cade Cunningham of the Detroit Pistons shoes during a pre season game against the Phoenix Suns at Little Caesars Arena on October 05, 2026 in Detroit, Michigan. (Gregory Shamus, Getty Images) 24 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season A view of the shoes worn by Donovan Mitchell of the Cleveland Cavaliers during Cleveland Cavaliers Media Day at Rocket Arena on September 28, 2026 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Nick Cammett, Getty Images) 25 / 25 See the coolest sneakers of the NBA season A detailed view of Kevin Durant of the Houston Rockets shoes as he poses for a photo during the Houston Rockets Media Day at Hilton Americas-Houston on September 22, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Kenneth Richmond, Getty Images) Warriors head coach Steve Kerr pointed out that the rookie has things that he still needs to recognize and learn, but he's overall impressed by his rookie early on by the things that he's been able to come in and immediately do to contribute to the team.
"The ability to do what Jimmy (Butler) does, slow the game down, get fouled, create shots for himself, or others, it's a game changer for us. And so now we've got to take advantage of this momentum for the night," Kerr said. "Obviously tough to start 0-3, but long, long season, and we feel like we've got a good team, and we can win a lot of games."
Kerr is excited by Lendeborg's ability. He's coming off of a 26-point performance against the Phoenix Suns on Oct. 24. Lendeborg is adapting to the league, rather swiftly. The rookie averages 21.8 points, 9.2 rebounds and 4.8 assists through his first four career games.
"I think that's the exciting part, is where this can go," Kerr said. "There's still probably 10 plays that I could pull up on tape where he made mistakes, either defensively, or offensively. Not recognizing something that he needs to recognize. Despite all that, he just dominated the game and took over. At 24, in his fourth game ... pretty impressive. We're gonna keep coaching him, and keep trying to get him to learn the NBA game, and make the most of that enormous potential he's got."
It wasn't just Lendeborg. After all, he still plays on a team with No. 30. Curry was perfect from the field in the win. He scored 24 points on 8-for-8 shooting, 3-for-3 on 3-pointers and 5-for-5 from the free throw line.
Curry was all positive when asked about Lendeborg. There's a common excitement about what he brings to the table.
"Yaxel played amazing, we were flying around on defense, that's how we got to win," Curry said in a postgame interview with Peacock. When asked the most impressive thing about the rook, Curry noted his composure.
"He just came off of NCAA championship run," Curry said. "He's just got composure and feel. ...His size on the court, he's a matchup problem, but he's never really in a hurry and he's starting to see the pictures really well. (He's) distributing and being aggressive getting the free throw line, offensive rebound. Kind of a full package, so we want him to still continue to play aggressive."
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Yaxel Lendeborg scores career-high 31 points in Warriors first win
Source: Sports
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