THE WEEK BEFORE training camp, every Golden State Warriors player gathered at Jimmy Butler's mansion in San Diego and competed in a handful of pickup games.
In his lone game paired with Stephen Curry and Draymond Green, rookie wing Yaxel Lendeborg found himself near the elbow during a frontcourt inbound. As the ball was delivered to Green up top, Curry cut toward Lendeborg to set a back screen. Both defenders remained with Curry; Lendeborg, sensing it, slipped backdoor and received a pass from Green for an uncontested dunk.
"'That's all year! All year!'" Green and Curry roared at Lendeborg with ferocity, according to the rookie. "Super loud and aggressive."
In Lendeborg's mind, he made the simple read within the flow, using Curry's gravity for two easy points. It represented something far bigger for Green and Curry. Their newest weapon was already recognizing and leveraging the patterns that make the Warriors' offense hum, signaling a readiness to help the team win before the two franchise legends age out of the league.
"It looked like we had been playing together for a long time," Green said.
On their final draft board in June, the Warriors -- who owned the No. 11 pick -- had Lendeborg and Arizona guard Brayden Burries ranked neck-and-neck, behind the consensus group of prospects up top. If Burries was there, team sources have indicated they would've drafted the 20-year-old combo guard for his upside. He had fans all over the organization.