OKC 104, GSW 97: Gui Santos Delivers Steady 44.7 Yahoo FP
Marcus Thompson Jr.
Fire Lieutenant · Golden State Warriors fan
Thunder Steal One in Oakland, But It's a Santos Party for Warriors Fantasy Owners
Man, this one hurt to watch. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder slip past us 104-97 in a defensive grind that felt like watching paint dry, except the paint kept hitting threes. But here's the thing that matters for your fantasy squad: the secondary scorers went absolutely nuclear on both sides, and that's the real story you need to act on.
| Player | ESPN FP | Yahoo FP | Tonight | Season Avg | +/- Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gui Santos | 42.0 | 44.7 | 22/11/3 | 6.9/3.4/1.8 | +15.1 |
| Shai Gilgeous-Alexander | 39.0 | 42.5 | 27/5/5 | 31.7/4.4/6.5 | -4.7 |
| Brandin Podziemski | 39.0 | 38.2 | 17/6/6 | 12.6/5.2/3.7 | +4.4 |
| Draymond Green | 36.0 | 30.3 | 16/4/5 | 8.4/5.6/5.2 | +7.6 |
| Isaiah Joe | 28.0 | 27.3 | 18/4/3 | 10.9/2.6/1.4 | +7.1 |
| Jaylin Williams | 21.0 | 25.8 | 9/14/4 | 7.0/5.3/2.6 | +2.0 |
| Gary Payton II | 20.0 | 24.9 | 7/12/1 | 5.9/3.1/1.6 | +1.1 |
| Kristaps Porziņģis | 19.0 | 24.5 | 9/5/5 | 16.8/4.9/2.6 | -7.8 |
| Kenrich Williams | 25.0 | 22.9 | 13/7/1 | 6.6/3.2/1.4 | +6.4 |
| Aaron Wiggins | 23.0 | 22.8 | 9/4/4 | 10.3/3.4/1.8 | -1.3 |
Gui Santos Just Announced Himself
Look, I've been watching basketball for 40 years. I've seen bench guys go off before. This ain't that. Gui Santos dropped 44.7 Yahoo points on a season average of 6.9 points per game. That's not a good night. That's a declaration. He went 8-19 from the field, grabbed 11 boards in 37 minutes, and looked like he'd been possessed by the ghost of Run TMC.
The Warriors needed him because nobody else could generate offense consistently. But here's what matters for your league: this wasn't some garbage time explosion. Santos was getting real minutes in meaningful situations. If the Warriors keep rolling him out like this, we're looking at a completely different fantasy asset than the journeyman we've been sleeping on all season.
Don't go crazy in free agency tonight, but if he's available in your league, you're sniffing around. In 12-team leagues with active waiver wires, somebody's about to get burned for not claiming him.
Shai Did Shai Things (But Not All of Them)
Here's the annoying part about covering the reigning MVP: sometimes he plays like the reigning MVP and still doesn't blow up your box score the way you want. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 42.5 Yahoo points on 27 points, 5 assists, and 5 rebounds. That's a solid night for a regular player. For Shai? That's actually down 4.7 points from his season average.
The thing is, he was efficient as hell (14-15 FT, only 6-15 from the field) and orchestrated the offense fine. The Thunder just didn't need him to go full Penny Hardaway. They got their dirty work done with role players. Which is actually good news for Thunder fantasy owners long-term, because it means Shai doesn't have to carry the entire load every night.
Still, if you drafted him expecting 43+ Yahoo points nightly, reset those expectations. Even MVPs have off-shooting nights sometimes.
The Warriors' Role Player Explosion
Brandin Podziemski putting up 38.2 Yahoo on 17 points, 6 rebounds, and 6 assists? That's the guy the Warriors have been missing all season. He was All-NBA level in terms of efficiency (6-17 from deep range showing 3 threes, floor general vibes all night).
Draymond Green went absolutely nuclear for a role player, dropping 30.3 Yahoo on 6-10 shooting with FOUR threes. Draymond hitting threes like it's 2015 changes everything about Golden State's spacing, and if this is the version we're getting down the stretch, suddenly the Warriors look a lot different in the standings. Offensively he's mostly a bluff, but when he's knocking down shots like tonight, defenses have to respect it.
Gary Payton II was a rebound machine (12 boards, 7 points) for 24.9 Yahoo FP. That's what you want from a backup big in the modern game, and if the Warriors are gonna make a real run, GP2's rebounding margin is legitimately important.
OKC's Supporting Cast Made the Difference
Isaiah Joe came off the bench and went absolutely OFF. 27.3 Yahoo FP on 18 points with 6-6 FT shooting? That dude was automatic and the Warriors couldn't stay in front of him all night. He's up 7.1 points from his season average, which tells you something: when the role players get confident, that's when good teams become great teams down the stretch.
Jaylin Williams absolutely demolished inside with 25.8 Yahoo on 14 boards and 9 points. That's the kind of rebounding night that wins close games. He was competing for every possession like the whole season came down to this one.
Kenrich Williams chipped in 22.9 Yahoo (13 points, 7 boards) in just 19 minutes. That's efficiency, and it's exactly why Thunder have all these young versatile wings. One guy goes down, the next one steps up and does the same job.
The Real Fantasy Lesson Here
This game is a reminder that you can't just stream role players hoping for lightning in a bottle. But you also can't ignore when a team starts getting healthy and its role players start building chemistry. The Thunder have been quietly scary all season, and tonight showed you why: when Shai doesn't have to go 30+ a night, their whole system works better.
For Warriors fans like me, it stings. But for fantasy purposes, Santos is someone to track closely, and if Podziemski and Draymond keep playing like this, the Warriors could make a serious playoff push that helps your roster.
Just don't overreact to one game. That's how you end up dropping the wrong guy on Wednesday.