Gui Santos must sharpen his 3-point shot to hold off Warriors' new depth

Gui Santos enters a crowded Warriors frontcourt

Gui Santos looked like a legitimate piece of Golden State's future last season, stepping up in a depleted rotation and showing he could create his own shot inside while staying dangerous from the perimeter. But heading into 2026-27, his path back to consistent minutes isn't as clear as it seemed a few months ago.

Lendeborg's arrival already blocks the starting job

The biggest obstacle for Santos is the arrival of Yaxel Lendeborg, who looks set to start alongside Draymond Green in the frontcourt at least until Jimmy Butler returns from injury, which the Warriors expect around midseason. Lendeborg brings the kind of defensive versatility and offensive polish that makes him an instant-impact starter for a team that has been searching for exactly that.

Santos still has a clear lane if he shoots it well

None of that means Santos is being written off. He's earned the chance to be Golden State's primary offensive weapon off the bench in the frontcourt, and for that role to stick, one thing matters above all else: hitting shots from beyond the arc at a consistent clip.

Last season, Santos knocked down 35.1% of his 3-point attempts, a respectable number that held up reasonably well even as his shot volume increased down the stretch. That's the kind of floor-spacing the Warriors need from their bench forward but it's not automatic, and it's about to get more competition.

Georges Niang's signing raises the stakes

Golden State's reported interest in Georges Niang, a veteran forward who has played for the Utah Jazz and Philadelphia 76ers, complicates things further. Even on a partially guaranteed, veteran-minimum deal, Niang's shooting is exactly the kind of skill that always finds a way into Steve Kerr's rotation.

Niang missed the entire 2025-26 season while recovering from injury, so it's unclear how much he still has left as a rebounder or interior scorer. But as a career 39.9% 3-point shooter who hit 40.6% of his attempts in his last full NBA season (2024-25), he offers a level of perimeter reliability that's hard to ignore — and could push him ahead of Santos on the depth chart if the youngster's shot isn't falling.

What happens when Butler comes back?

This isn't about Niang leapfrogging Santos outright Santos still has the far higher long-term upside. But once Jimmy Butler is fully healthy, the Warriors will have a real logjam for frontcourt minutes. Draymond Green could shift to a bench role, or Lendeborg could start eating into Santos' scoring minutes off the bench. If Santos struggles from deep early in the season, don't be surprised if Kerr leans on Niang's shooting instead and that would only tighten the squeeze once the rotation is at full strength.

The bottom line for Golden State

Santos' role heading into 2026-27 isn't guaranteed it's his to keep, but only if he keeps knocking down shots. Whether he can carry that late-season momentum into a full year will go a long way toward determining how much of Golden State's bench scoring load he's asked to shoulder.

Keep an eye on how Kerr splits frontcourt minutes once training camp opens the Santos-Niang battle could be one of the more revealing subplots of Golden State's preseason.