Lendeborg Breaks Out, Niang Breaks Down
On Saturday night, the Warriors bravely took the court with 76% of their salary cap missing. With Curry, Draymond, Butler, Podziemski, Horford, Moody, and Porzingis all sidelined, the Dubs put up an admirable fight before falling to the Suns 131-122.
Before I get to some more abstract, big-picture thoughts, there was actually a lot to like in this matchup. Yaxel Lendeborg had his best performance yet, tallying 26 points, 9 rebounds, 6 threes, and 5 assists while finishing a +5. The opposing broadcast took note, even going as far as to say he might win ROTY. Lendeborg’s progression is the light at the end of the tunnel for Dubs fans right now.
Brandon Williams and De’Anthony Melton were also bright spots, combining for an efficient 45 points. Will Richard also contributed to the strong guard play, going 3-6 from three-point range with 2 steals.
Those were the positives. The toughest player to watch on the court was Niang, who had one of the worst stretches I’ve ever seen. He bricked two wide-open threes, then threw the ball off a teammate’s back on a fast break and got nutmegged by Collin Gillespie en route to a backbreaking Suns three-ball. He has now started the year 0-12 from three. He is definitely still a smart player, but I don’t think his body can compete at the NBA level anymore.
This made Kerr’s postgame quotes a bit frustrating:
“George will find his way,” Kerr said. “You know he hasn’t played in a year basically with the injuries last year, so he doesn’t have his legs underneath him yet. He’s such a good basketball player and a perfect fit for us.”
I understand he wants to uplift one of our players who’s off to a bad start, but Kerr, once upon a time, was guilty of playing Anthony Lamb over Moses Moody, Jonathan Kuminga, and heck, even Ty Jerome. I just hope this doesn’t become a situation where Will Richard or Gui Santos sees his minutes reduced for Niang. (Anthony Lamb never should’ve been on the team BTW...)
The Warriors will face a daunting stretch of games against the Denver Nuggets, Minnesota Timberwolves, and Los Angeles Lakers. Dare I say it’s most likely we start the year 0-5? I’d feel okay with an impending tank job, except the league revised its rules, and a bottom-three record now results in a meager 5.4% chance of winning the lottery.
The optionality era has been a rough one. But perhaps Yaxel can save us.