‘I Lost All Respect’: Golden State Warriors’ Yaxel Lendeborg Rips Los Angeles Lakers Star Luka Dončić For ‘Whining And Complaining’
LOS ANGELES — Golden State Warriors rookie Yaxel Lendeborg had a lot of respect for Los Angeles Lakers star Luka Dončić heading into Wednesday’s (10/21) game at Crypto.com Arena.
It took one NBA game for Lendeborg to change his mind about Dončić.
“I had a lot of respect for him [because] I didn’t really watch the NBA much,” Lendeborg said. “I just watched highlights and seen him kill people. But being in it firsthand and seeing all the whining and complaining, I lost all respect.”
Lendeborg and Dončić got into it several times in the season opener for the Warriors and Lakers. Tempers first flared late in the second quarter when Dončić pump-faked Lendeborg into a shooting foul near the top of the key and let him know about it after the whistle.
With 31 seconds left in the second quarter, Dončić called for a clear-out against Lendeborg and the rookie defended him well without fouling, forcing a step-back miss.
As the Warriors pushed the ball in transition, Lendeborg continued to yell at Dončić, and official James Capers stopped play and called a technical on Lendeborg.
“I was telling him he sucks,” Lendeborg said. “He can’t score on me. You talk but you can’t score on me. I said it the whole game. I said a couple cuss words, obviously. That’s why I got the technical. But I was letting him know.”
As he has done many times in his career with the Dallas Mavericks and Lakers, Dončić hit a 48-foot half-court heave at the buzzer to finish the second quarter. The superstar pointed and laughed at Lendeborg, who was the nearest defender.
The Lakers beat the Warriors by a final score of 127-105. Dončić finished with 28 points, eight rebounds and seven assists, while Lendeborg put up 12 points in his NBA debut.
“I guess this is what the NBA is like, man,” Lendeborg said. “A lot of flopping, a lot of foul baiting, a lot of praying to the refs, man. Interesting first game for me.”
The Warriors and Lakers meet again on October 30 in San Francisco.
Let’s see if Lendeborg and Dončić get into it again that game.
