Few rookies draw the spotlight after just one game in the NBA, but Yaxel Lendeborg managed to do so following the Warriors’ season-opening loss to the Lakers. The Warriors rookie’s callout of Luka Doni in his postgame press conference made national headlines. All eyes were on Lendeborg to see how he would follow it up, particularly when the league’s scoring leader and the Lakers rolled into Chase Center the following week.
Warriors coach Steve Kerr, speaking Wednesday with ESPN’s Ernie Johnson on “Inside the NBA,” shared how he coached Lendeborg after the rookie’s comments to the media.
“We talked to him as a staff; we talked as a team,” Kerr recalled. “Steph [Curry] had a great comment after that Laker game. He said, ‘Hey, I love Yaxel’s competitive desire, but now he’s got to back it up,’ and I thought that was perfectly said.
“So, I kind of reiterated that with Yaxel, like, hey — we love this spirit, we love the competitiveness, but just know that Luka’s going to be coming.” "You'd rather reign a guy back in than try...