Bye Omari Spellman

[jayu70]

No denying his bball skills. Just had no mouth discipline.
Hopefully the trade was a wakeup call for him and he gets it together.
I was excited about the still pics and short clip vids of his off season workouts....then he showed up to SL....what a BIG disappointment that was. He had gotten FATTER!

[graymule]

And, Hello Damian Jones.
Hope this is a great trade for both teams.

[jayu70]

Read on Twitter

Hopefully it was a wake up call for him.

Read on Twitter

[Jamaaliver]

Read on Twitter

[DirtybirdGA]

Credit to Omari, not just for losing the weight, but I'm sure its tough to do it so quickly.

[hawks_fan25]

That trade was probably the best thing for his career. It let him know that you can't mess around and be lazy in the NBA. Hopefully, he plays well, stays in shape and has a good career. I think he has plenty of talent, but it was clear that he wasn't going to maximize his potential without some sort of wake up call.

[graymule]

He may now become a star NBA player. Apparently, before the trade, he didn't take notice of how important
it is to get in shape and stay in shape. Bet he will do it now. Good for him !! Another ex Hawk to root for....

[Jamaaliver]

Verdict coming on ex-Villanova star Spellman



Thursday is the deadline for the Warriors to exercise their option on Spellman’s contract. Spellman is signed through this season, but if the Warriors want to lock him up for next season, they must do so by Oct. 31.

“You’d almost like another month or two to see him in actual games,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said. “You have 30 days to evaluate a guy then you decide whether or not to pick up his option.”

Whether they will is uncertain. For sure, though, his chances look better than they did in the summer.

In July, a year after using their first-round pick (30th overall) on the Villanova big man, the Atlanta Hawks decided they’d seen enough. They traded Spellman to the Warriors for center Damian Jones and a future second-round pick. He had come to Summer League at 315 pounds.

Spoiler:

Spellman left college after two years, and the structure he had in place at Villanova was gone. In the NBA, there is help, but there is also freedom. It’s up to players to manage their bodies. With the Hawks, Spellman ballooned back into the 290s.

“Sometimes, I felt like I was a little too comfortable,” Spellman said. “Feeling like ‘I got my money, I arrived.'”

To keep himself in check, Spellman is building his support system. His grandmother and mother flew out to San Francisco to help him move, and he talks to them every day. He’s leaned on forward Draymond Green — who cut 25 pounds right before last season’s playoff run — for advice, and has worked with assistant coach Aaron Miles on fitting into the Warriors’ system.

Warriors coaches want to see good five-minute stretches from Spellman. They don’t want Spellman to idle on the perimeter, as he did in Atlanta. They want him setting screens, rolling to the rim hard, sprinting back on defense and talking to his teammates. It comes down to conditioning.

Even if the Warriors pass on his option, Spellman will have plenty of time to impress them and every other NBA team. He will be a free agent next summer if the Warriors don’t lock him up by Thursday.

Mercury News

[jayu70]

Read on Twitter

?s=20

[Jamaaliver]

Omari Spellman thankful Warriors are helping save his NBA career

Omari Spellman would like you to know that career is in the process of being saved, and he is crediting his new surroundings as a member of the Golden State Warriors.

When the Warriors acquired Spellman from the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for center Damian Jones on July 8, the man came to the Bay Area lugging a caveat. He was about 6-foot-8, with a 7-2 wingspan, young (22) and skilled – but he also weighed a few bricks north of 300. Would he be able to control his weight and maintain the conditioning required to be an impact player in the NBA?

Less than five months later, Spellman is 40 pounds lighter, a delighted Warrior and rapidly becoming the force that every team craves: The "energy guy."

Spellman's latest performance came Wednesday night in a 104-90 win over the Chicago Bulls at Chase Center. Playing 24 minutes, nearly all of them in overdrive, he totaled 13 points, a career-high 11 rebounds and a game-high three blocks. He has played between 23 and 28 minutes in each of the last five games, averaging 11.6 points and 6.6 rebounds. He is plus-24 in that span.

"This is the best I felt since college, to be honest," Spellman said after the game.

Spoiler:

He weighed 254 pounds at the NBA draft combine The Hawks selected the Villanova product in the first round (No. 30 overall) of the 2018 draft believing his explosive athleticism, soft hands and nice shooting tough would play well in the NBA. Spellman would show flashes of what he could be, teasing his employer, and then he would fix himself a hearty plate or two.

Every day was Thanksgiving. A lot of the nights, too.

Spellman had to do something to assuage the emptiness. He was, by all accounts, including his own, not ready for the adult responsibilities that come with being in the NBA. He suddenly had money and time, and that equation led him astray.

The unhappiness of Spellman's pre-Warriors NBA experience has receded, and he is feeling the joy of today.

"This is the best I've felt as a person since college, and that's not a knock on Atlanta," he said. "There was just some things I was going through, and things I didn't understand that made it harder for me that first year in Atlanta. And just having people come around me and seeing that I need help and help me in a way that they have, especially my family, my close circle and the Warriors organization has made it a really easy transition from a very bad place to being happy again and just playing basketball.

"It was a long time that I kind of dreaded basketball and to get that back is pretty dope."

The Warriors are a team in transition, moving on from the super-team age – five consecutive trips to the NBA Finals, three championships – and into the age of uncertainty. They're trying to build a bridge from what was to what will be.

His energy is the best kind, productive and contagious. On a team in need of scoring, he's shooting 37.8 percent from deep – 52.6 percent over the last five games. On a team in need of rebounding, Spellman attacks the glass.

"He's really explosive athletically," coach Steve Kerr said. "He has long arms and he's bouncy. For a guy his size, you don't expect that kind of lift and explosion. So when the ball goes up, he's already in the paint because he's got strength, position and he goes after it athletically. It's pretty impressive."

Spellman in all likelihood will remain thickly built, but his endurance and athleticism are evidence of muscle. The NBA has seen many players lose the battle with the scale, from John "Hot Plate" Williams to the late Robert "Tractor" Traylor. There are others, though, that conquered their caloric demons and forged impressive careers, with Charles Barkley a high-profile example.

Spellman yearns to be among the success stories. He listens. He reacts. Now that he has found a place to blossom, he may be too relentless to give up.

"Our coaching staff really feels like playing that hard and that aggressive for me gives our team the best chance to win," he said. "So that's all they had to say to me, like, ‘Alright, I'll do whatever.' Just going after blocks, going after everything, trying to get every board, every dive, every loose ball.

"That's my role on this team and I'm going to continue to bring that energy, along with spacing the floor or whatever. But I'm just happy to be bringing the energy for this team."

NBC Sports BayArea

[jayu70]

Omari Spellman thankful Warriors are helping save his NBA career

Omari Spellman would like you to know that career is in the process of being saved, and he is crediting his new surroundings as a member of the Golden State Warriors.

When the Warriors acquired Spellman from the Atlanta Hawks in exchange for center Damian Jones on July 8, the man came to the Bay Area lugging a caveat. He was about 6-foot-8, with a 7-2 wingspan, young (22) and skilled – but he also weighed a few bricks north of 300. Would he be able to control his weight and maintain the conditioning required to be an impact player in the NBA?

Less than five months later, Spellman is 40 pounds lighter, a delighted Warrior and rapidly becoming the force that every team craves: The "energy guy."

Spellman's latest performance came Wednesday night in a 104-90 win over the Chicago Bulls at Chase Center. Playing 24 minutes, nearly all of them in overdrive, he totaled 13 points, a career-high 11 rebounds and a game-high three blocks. He has played between 23 and 28 minutes in each of the last five games, averaging 11.6 points and 6.6 rebounds. He is plus-24 in that span.

"This is the best I felt since college, to be honest," Spellman said after the game.

Spoiler:

He weighed 254 pounds at the NBA draft combine The Hawks selected the Villanova product in the first round (No. 30 overall) of the 2018 draft believing his explosive athleticism, soft hands and nice shooting tough would play well in the NBA. Spellman would show flashes of what he could be, teasing his employer, and then he would fix himself a hearty plate or two.

Every day was Thanksgiving. A lot of the nights, too.

Spellman had to do something to assuage the emptiness. He was, by all accounts, including his own, not ready for the adult responsibilities that come with being in the NBA. He suddenly had money and time, and that equation led him astray.

The unhappiness of Spellman's pre-Warriors NBA experience has receded, and he is feeling the joy of today.

"This is the best I've felt as a person since college, and that's not a knock on Atlanta," he said. "There was just some things I was going through, and things I didn't understand that made it harder for me that first year in Atlanta. And just having people come around me and seeing that I need help and help me in a way that they have, especially my family, my close circle and the Warriors organization has made it a really easy transition from a very bad place to being happy again and just playing basketball.

"It was a long time that I kind of dreaded basketball and to get that back is pretty dope."

The Warriors are a team in transition, moving on from the super-team age – five consecutive trips to the NBA Finals, three championships – and into the age of uncertainty. They're trying to build a bridge from what was to what will be.

His energy is the best kind, productive and contagious. On a team in need of scoring, he's shooting 37.8 percent from deep – 52.6 percent over the last five games. On a team in need of rebounding, Spellman attacks the glass.

"He's really explosive athletically," coach Steve Kerr said. "He has long arms and he's bouncy. For a guy his size, you don't expect that kind of lift and explosion. So when the ball goes up, he's already in the paint because he's got strength, position and he goes after it athletically. It's pretty impressive."

Spellman in all likelihood will remain thickly built, but his endurance and athleticism are evidence of muscle. The NBA has seen many players lose the battle with the scale, from John "Hot Plate" Williams to the late Robert "Tractor" Traylor. There are others, though, that conquered their caloric demons and forged impressive careers, with Charles Barkley a high-profile example.

Spellman yearns to be among the success stories. He listens. He reacts. Now that he has found a place to blossom, he may be too relentless to give up.

"Our coaching staff really feels like playing that hard and that aggressive for me gives our team the best chance to win," he said. "So that's all they had to say to me, like, ‘Alright, I'll do whatever.' Just going after blocks, going after everything, trying to get every board, every dive, every loose ball.

"That's my role on this team and I'm going to continue to bring that energy, along with spacing the floor or whatever. But I'm just happy to be bringing the energy for this team."

NBC Sports BayArea

I'm happy for him. The trade was a wakeup call for him.
He'd probably still be fat if he was here.

[Jamaaliver]

Hawks happy to see Omari Spellman thrive after ‘change of scenery’ with Warriors

Omari Spellman touched down here on Monday morning as a 260-pound center who has emerged as one of the Warriors’ most productive bench players, a far cry from the 315-pound disappointment who was traded from Atlanta in July after just one season.

After weight issues and an extended depression with Atlanta, he saw his trade to the Warriors as much-needed motivation, spurring him to shed 55 pounds and seek therapy.

Little more than a month removed from having his third-year option picked up by Golden State, Spellman, 22, is finally tapping into the potential that compelled the Hawks to take him No. 30 overall in the 2018 NBA draft. In four of the past six games, he has scored in double figures, putting his scoring average at 7.9 points on the season.

No longer grabbing his shorts after a couple trips up and down the court, Spellman has blossomed into an instant-energy role player. His offensive rebounding rate ranks among the league’s top 20. Forced to match up against much-bigger centers with Kevon Looney sidelined by a neuropathic condition, Spellman boasts the Warriors’ best defensive rating.

Few in Atlanta regret the trade that sent Spellman to the Warriors, and brought back a future second-round pick and center Damian Jones.

“I think the trade worked out for both sides,” said Kerr, whose Warriors made the deal with Atlanta in part to get roughly $400,000 under the hard cap. “Atlanta was looking for a rim-running center like Damian, and we were interested in Omari’s skill and shot-making, his potential.”

As for Spellman? He doesn’t want to revisit his tumultuous season with the Hawks. Asked Sunday how he’d feel being back in Atlanta for the first time since the trade, Spellman said, “Another game. I don’t care. I promise you, I don’t. It’s not even a thing.”

SF Chronicle

[Jamaaliver]

An 'eye-opening' conversation with Omari.

Omari Spellman on his lost rookie season in Atlanta



The day he was traded from the Hawks, back in early July, Omari Spellman was around 315 pounds, a high point. By camp, he was down in the 270 range. Now, he’s under 260 and still plummeting...fewer than two months into his second season, Spellman, the slimmer version, suddenly looks like an intriguing piece of the Warriors’ future.

His near immediate success within the Warriors automatically makes you wonder what must’ve happened in Atlanta.

Spoiler:

Q. The weight issues didn’t just pop up in Atlanta, right?

A. Nah. I had been going through s*** prior to that. But in college, everything is so structured.
...So you really can’t f*** up. I was f***ing up, but the difference is, this time, when I f***ed up, no one was helping me. No one was saying nothing to me.

Q. You’re making a lot of money, too. Which obviously is good in the long term but can kind of be destructive when it comes that sudden.

A.Bro, you give a 21-year-old who has never had that kind of money $60,000 a month — like, after taxes — it’s like, bro, he’s going to f*** that up. There’s no he might f*** that up. No. He’s going to f*** that up at some point.

Certain people, you just don’t see it. Their f-ups aren’t appearance quantified. But you could see I’m f-ing up. I’m fat. It’s different for other people.

Q. When did you know, uh-oh, this is heading toward a bad place?

A. To be honest, man, I knew for a pretty long time. I didn’t know what was going to happen. But I knew for a fact that, at some point, the relationship had gotten so toxic in Atlanta — organizational to player. They had tried a lot of stuff, they really did and I could never say they didn’t. They tried a lot of stuff to help me and I was just not in a place to accept that help yet.

I could tell they were frustrated. I won’t say I knew I was going to get traded, but I knew something was going to happen.

That s*** was a hard realization. People don’t realize that. When you’re in a low place, the fight to get back up is not easy. To mentally change my perception of myself. You start to see yourself the way people tell you that you are.

As crazy as it sounds, I’m blessed to have been traded. Because what was about to happen in Atlanta, some people don’t come back from that. Because I know my chance in Atlanta had already come and gone. Sometimes when you’re stuck in an organization where your chance is already past, that’s like some of the hardest s*** ever.

Q. You mention some of the stuff the Hawks tried to do to counteract it. What kind of stuff?

A. Counseling. Nutritionist. Therapist. It was a lot of s*** they were trying to do. Taking my blood work to see if it was (something deeper). There were a lot of things they were doing, like giving me the other team’s best matchup just to try to instill confidence in me.

I was in a bad place, man. And the people I was around in Atlanta [outside the organization] weren’t helping me. Like, I had a bad circle in Atlanta. I had to learn.

...again, I don’t want to--sometimes it’s not the organization’s fault. Sometimes people just go through things, man.

The Athletic