Golden State Warriors forward Gui Santos shared insights on his development and role with the team during a recent appearance on the Fullcourt Passport podcast, hosted by Ric Bucher and Bostjan Nachbar. Santos, a 2019 gold medalist with Brazil’s U17 team, reflected on his transition from a point guard in Brazil to a versatile forward in the NBA.
Santos explained, “When I got here, one of the coaches came to me and said, ‘Gui, you got Stephen Curry on your team, so you got to learn how to play without the ball.’ I said, ‘All right, I will do whatever I need to do to make it to the NBA.’” He described learning to impact the game without controlling the ball, emphasizing defense, spacing, and smart decision-making.
He credited his early G League experience with Santa Cruz for teaching him patience and adaptability. “I thought that I had to make like 30 points and 10 rebounds to go to the NBA. The coaches told me, ‘We just need you to play hard, play good defense, space the floor, and make quick decisions,’” Santos said.
Santos detailed his path from Brazil to the NBA, revealing that a professional contract with Minas prevented him from pursuing college basketball. He reflected on working to improve his athleticism after initially withdrawing from the 2021 draft. “I just came back and really was just hard work: lifting, extra work, extra work,” he said.
On Brazilian basketball’s current state, Santos highlighted funding challenges and limited exposure as reasons for the country producing fewer NBA players today. He noted several prospects, including Eduardo Klafke, Samis Calerdon, who have the skills and physicality to reach the league.
Looking ahead, Santos expressed interest in playing point guard in the future, both internationally and potentially in Europe. “I would love to play for Brazil for the national team as a point guard. I played the World Cup, I played the Olympics, but I want to play more as a point guard too,” he said. He also indicated plans to eventually play in Europe and return to Brazil to finish his career.
For the 2025-26 season, Santos has appeared in 20 games, averaging 3.2 points, 1.9 rebounds, and 0.7 assists per contest while providing depth for Golden State at forward.
Santos emphasized the importance of national team success for Brazil, noting the team’s goal of climbing the FIBA rankings. “If we go higher, automatically the resources and support for basketball in Brazil go up too,” he said, highlighting the broader impact of international success.
