I’ve taken to calling Omari Spellman “Spelldude” since he just looks like the kind of dude who would be pleased if you called him “dude”. In general, I feel like big, round guys are “dude” types, and Spellman is as big and round as they come. Also, I think there’s a pokemon with the word “dude” in its name, and maybe that pokemon is a big and round pokemon. Maybe. It’s been a long time since I watched the Pokemon TV show or played with my Pokemon cards (which were supposed to be worth something, god damn it).
Spelldude had his best game of his career last night, besting his previous career-high by five points. His efforts were, in the end, wasted, but most of the Warriors’ role-players are having their best performances wasted, so he just gets to join the club in that regard. And, honestly, no performance is wasted if other teams’ scouting departments are paying attention.
This version of Spelldude is the version that Warriors fans were convinced they were getting when they acquired him. It’s the version that is portrayed in the highlight videos I made during his rookie season with the Hawks (thank you Warriors fans for bumping up the view counts on those). But this version of Spelldude only shows up once in a while. The rest of the time, he’s sitting on the bench eating mozzarella sticks that he smuggled from the concession stand inside his undershorts.