The Golden State Warriors continue to struggle. With Jonathan Kuminga out and Draymond Green having missed the last two games, Steve Kerr has been looking elsewhere for size and toughness.
Although he didn’t have his best game in Toronto, Gui Santos has been showing over the last few games that Kerr may not be able to stash him on the bench for much longer. Santos' statistics speak for themself and proves he may be playing himself up the Warriors depth chart.
On Monday night the Warriors fell to the lowly Toronto Raptors 104-101, with the visitors unable to handle the size and hustle of the home team. Stephen Curry did his best to carry the Dubs, but without Green in the lineup, the Warriors were unable to keep the Raptors out of the paint. Being the smallest team in the league is starting to show as Golden State were outscored in the paint 50-26.
Gui Santos may have to become a regular in the Warriors rotation
The Santos statistics aren’t necessarily jumping off the page, with the Brazilian forward having only gotten limited opportunities in his two-year NBA career. That being said, he is starting to make the most of them. He is only averaging 2.3 points, 1.5 rebounds and .9 assists this season on 48.8% from the field and 36.8% from three. Bear in mind this is all while averaging 8.3 minutes per game.
There have been a few times this season that Santos has gotten the opportunity to showcase his skills. When Santos plays 10 or more minutes, he is a +7 overall and averages 6.5 points and 3.3 rebounds. These numbers still aren’t sexy, but the jump shows that with more opportunity comes more production. The Warriors can always use size and shooting which are elements that Santos can bring
Besides the raw numbers, Santos is becoming essential to the Warriors because of the energy he brings. As the Warriors hang on the wrong side of .500, they are in desperate need of the sort of energy and life Santos brings, particularly in a pivotal performance against the Detroit Pistons on Thursday. The offensive rebounds, the sprinting up and down the floor, the underdog mentality. These are all things the Warriors need to embrace as they continue to try and find an identity.
Santos’ energy, size (on an incredibly undersized Warriors roster), and shooting stroke are making him more and more playable. If other Warriors bench players are unable to bring a similar energy and skillset, Kerr will genuinely have to consider making Santos part of the regular rotation.