It’s been a hectic beginning to the NBA season, and tonight’s matchup between the Golden State Warriors and Minnesota Timberwolves will showcase some of the weirdness, and a lot of the excitement.
The bigger stories coming into this game were both announced yesterday. For the Warriors, Yaxel Lendeborg has popped up on the injury report. It’s not clear exactly when he hurt his foot on his way to the best game of his young career, 31 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists), but he did receive some treatment from staff after the game, and was wincing as he sat down for his postgame media availability. With the next game not until Friday, resting tonight would give him additional time to get all the way right.
Lendeborg said the foot was "tender" after he tripped over Nuggets forward Bryce Hopkins' foot. He added that the medical staff told him, "It should be nothing crazy."
The Timberwolves got significantly worse news, as star Anthony Edwards will be going in for a knee surgery. Relatively minor arthroscopic procedure - he’s estimated to be available again in two months - but a mid-season knee surgery and not coming back through the New Year is a big blow to a Timberwolves team that added Lonzo Ball and (Jonathan Kuminga). Edwards already has two 45-point games this season, the most recent coming in a long overtime loss.
Edwards had been listed as questionable on the Wolves’ injury report before Monday’s game against the Cleveland Cavaliers, the second night of a back-to-back, but he played a season-high 41 minutes and scored 47 points in a 127-125 overtime loss.
GAME DETAILS
WHO: Golden State Warriors (1-3) at Minnesota Timberwolves (3-1)
WHEN: Wednesday, October 28th, 2026; 5pm PDT
WATCH: NBCSBA/Peacock
Lendeborg gets the kind of opportunity Kuminga wanted, Golden State gets an early look at both sides of that organizational question.
The Warriors couldn’t find a consistent role for Kuminga, but his potential was undeniable. It’s only been four games, but the underlying tone of what the Warriors are looking for Lendeborg to do feels different. Or maybe it’s more primarily a difference in what Yax can reliably do.
Ironically enough, Kuminga is finding his place with the Timberwolves in exactly the sort of role that was reportedly at the heart of the conflict between the team and their rising star. Now playing on a very reasonable taxpayer MLE deal over the next two seasons.
On Wednesday, in Minnesota, the Warriors will come face to face with a version of their former heir that through four games — has been streamlined. After reportedly taking less money in free agency to land on a two-year, $13 million deal with the Timberwolves, the 23-year-old Kuminga has looked the part of a ready and willing secondary offensive valve (47% from three-point range) and lockdown point-of-attack defender (a 37.5% field goal percentage surrendered as the primary defender, per the NBA).
Looking at the stats, his shooting is way down. Only four games in, and playing with Lonzo Ball and alongside Anthony Edwards prolific offense, a lot of this can change over time, but the decrease in shot attempts is notable.
Compared with 2024–25: down 10.2 FGA per 100 possessions, a decrease of 42.1%;
Compared with his combined 2025–26 season: down 5.6 FGA per 100 (-28.6%);
Compared with his Atlanta stint: down 5.3 FGA per 100 (-27.5%).
Wait, let me make a visual aid for us…
That’s significant.
The two timelines paradox was a big reason why the entire premise was widely mocked. There’s a delicate balance of identifying the right talent and being able to develop that talent and assure mutuals trust throughout the process. Expecting a young player to navigate that level of pressure and expectation right out of the gate is nuts. That the trust was broken between the Warriors and Kuminga was no surprise, and the dramatic decrease in shot frequency is as much of a Kuminga recalibration as it is a nod to just how wrong everyone got the main question at the heart of that development process here.
A useful structure: recognizing what a young player can do, putting him in a role where he can do it, and giving him enough responsibility to find out whether it works.
Less useful: cramming a series of (admittedly high) promising draft picks up as the next generation of mega stars while the core group of OG’s are still out there winning rings.
There’s something distinctly different about how Lendeborg’s role is developing here as compared to Kuminga or Wiseman. This is a win-now team and there’s only one timeline that matters these days - whatever Curry has left.
"He had some assists, but also he had some plays where he was just the reason that we were open," head coach Steve Kerr said (via Joseph Dycus). "Then in the second half, we just decided to free him up a little more... He got hot right away."
Curry was a perfect shooter, hitting all eight of his field goal attempts (including 3 of 3 from deep) and went 5 for 5 from the charity stripe - but the story of the night was Yax’s.
From Daniel’s excellent recap, the rookie is off to a quick start, averaging 21.8 points, 9.3 rebounds, 4.8 assists in around 33 minutes per game on good efficiency.
This is what’s been needed, and while Kuminga showed the same promise in flashes, the lessons the Warriors have learned in the interim are setting up their newest promising rookie for a more successful run. You don’t have to take the reins. We’ll figure out that whole “next timeline” thing later. Just go out there and be a helpful member of this squad.
In parallel, the Warriors find themselves in need again. There’s a huge swath of minutes available for the taking and a player making a case for more. The difference is that the Warriors don’t need Lendeborg to become a franchise cornerstone, they need to give him a role that helps the team win. Right now, that’s a big role, and growing. Just like the mutual trust.
It’s only four games into the season, and for Yax, Kuminga, and the Warriors, there’s still a lot that can shift. Things change, priorities shift, and adjustments for losing and gaining players to injuries all season is an ongoing headache, but there’s something really cool happening with Yax and the Warriors right now. The next timeline stuff can wait. That doesn’t mean that anyone one the roster has to wait, especially not one as intriguing as Lendeborg, and surely not Curry, who can’t afford to wait anymore.
Prediction
Warriors win, and if Lendeborg plays, he continues to build a strong case for himself.