SAN FRANCISCO — With a mixture of old and young, the future of the Warriors is anybody’s guess.
The Warriors (31-28) made it clear however that Gui Santos would be part of the solution Saturday, announcing a two-year contract extension to the Brazilian born forward in advance of their game at Chase Center against the Los Angeles Lakers (34-24).
A second-round pick (No. 55 overall) in 2022, Santos has played in 48 games with 13 starts this season and has participated in the developmental G-League. In the last 12 games, Santos has been in double figures 11 times, averaging on 15.0 points on 58.8 percent shooting with coach Steve Kerr calling him one of their top “shot creators.” even if his style is a little unorthodox. He’s also shot 43.1 percent from 3-point range with 5.6 rebounds, 1.6 steals and 28.8 minutes during that span.
Asked about his ascension Friday following practice, Santos cited patience.
“When I got here, I was a point guard playing in Brazil, playing like a point guard, having the ball in my hand,” Santos said. “Then I spent the whole year in the G-League just learning how to fit in the system here because my goal was always playing in the NBA and playing for the Warriors.”
At first, that was easy enough since his instructions were basically to play hard on defense, crash the boards, and as Santos put it “get the ball to Steph.”
Yet Santos has given a good enough version of himself with Curry (knee) out of the lineup to merit an extension.
“Right now they give me the option or the opportunity to show a little bit more after we lost Jimmy (Butler),” Santos said. “With Draymond (back) out it’s given me more space to show a little bit more of what I can do. I’m glad they’re trusting me.”