Lendeborg to Enter 2026 NBA Draft After Michigan’s First Title Since 1989

Yaxel Lendeborg, who began playing organized basketball at age 18, will enter the 2026 NBA draft after leading Michigan to the national title. Lendeborg enrolled at Arizona Western College in 2020, transferred to UAB in 2023, and entered the 2025 NBA draft before withdrawing and moving to Michigan. 1 points per game.

Michigan’s 2026 championship was its first since 1989. Lendeborg was named an All-American and Big Ten Player of the Year during the 2025-26 season. He is listed at 6-foot-9 and 230 pounds and received a green-room invitation for the draft scheduled for Tuesday night in Brooklyn, New York.

“I learned so much through NBA 2K, so I kind of just understood the whole game of basketball because of that,” Lendeborg told ESPN. He added that adjusting to real-life footwork proved difficult at first. Lendeborg said he did not feel ready to join established NBA players a year earlier.

“I didn’t feel like I was comfortable enough to even step foot in the NBA with a bunch of guys that are already established in the league,” he said. His agent, Ron Shade, vice president of basketball at Octagon, noted that Lendeborg chose not to risk a path through the G League or two-way contracts.

“I just don’t think Yax wanted to do that at the time where he was in his life and in his career,” Shade said.

Brian Thornton, the Big 12’s chief basketball officer, said the current system allows players to develop further in college. “The NBA is getting a more developed product,” Thornton said. m.

Workouts with associate head coach Mike Boynton, and sessions inside a $10 million facility where analytics director Jacob Kohn provided targeted guidance.