Cavs’ Donovan Mitchell was given ‘Spida’ nickname in New York
- The man who nicknamed Cavs All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell explains how “Spida” came to be
- Mitchell discusses his outlook on his sixth appearance in the NBA playoffs but the first since the Cavs acquired him in a blockbuster trade with the Jazz
- Other players detail how Mitchell has led the playoff-bound Cavs on and off the court during his first season in Cleveland
Al Taylor thought the basketball would land out of bounds when his son Najee threw an off-target pass in an AAU game, but Donovan Mitchell demonstrated arachnid-like acrobatics while executing a save with shades of the supernatural.
“Donovan jumps in the air, extends his arm out of bounds, but his body’s inbounds, grabs the ball, brings the ball back inbounds, takes it through his leg and hits a 3-pointer,” Al Taylor said by phone from New Jersey. “My man, I was like, ‘That was like some Spider-Man stuff!’
“You had to see it to believe it. It was real crazy. It was something — I’m telling you, man — out of a movie, straight out of a movie.”
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Long before the Cavaliers — and their fans — became awestruck by Mitchell, he established a reputation as a kid from New York capable of Cirque du Soleil moves on the basketball court.
It’s why Al Taylor started calling Mitchell “Spida D.” The “D” stands for Donovan, but the nickname evolved.
Mitchell, 26, is now widely known as “Spida.”
The origin story of the nickname provides a window into Mitchell’s Big Apple roots as he prepares to lead the Cavs against his hometown New York Knicks in the first round of the NBA playoffs. Tipoff for Game 1 is set for 6 p.m. Saturday at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland.
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Mitchell has advanced to the playoffs in each of his six NBA seasons, the first five with the Utah Jazz, who traded him to the Cavaliers in September after the Knicks fell short of sealing a blockbuster deal of their own for “Spida.”