Hurlburt Field, Florida - LeBron James entered the stadium, headed for the bottom line and made a nifty behind the back pass to rookie center Dexter Pittman near the basket.
Pittman missed the layup.
It was then that he - and the rest of the Miami Heat - saw what has James as a teammate might mean.
two-time reigning NBA MVP crashed home lose Pittman, one of many moments that left the guests of the U.S. Air Force howling when the Heat had his first full preseason scrimmage Friday night. It was the first time James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh played together in a game situation as teammates heat.
"No time to lose," said James.
It was the seventh session of the practice of the eight heat trip planned for one week to one Air Force installation in northwestern Florida, and so far, this had the most fanfare.
An emotional video montage - replete with instances that included Wade, James and Bosh represent his country at the Beijing Olympics - played before the game, immediately before the presentation of colors. About 225 guests from the Air Force were invited to each half, and the gym was cleared after the first period of 20 minutes to allow more pilots to fill the stands.
After the match, Sgt. Kevin James Kirkland said that, when deployed in Afghanistan last year, went to see Cleveland Cavaliers games, which began at 2 am
"I thank you," James said, nodding and smiling.
Wade and James watched each other for most of the early stages, and each had his first highlight-reel moments this season.
Wade threw a 40 footer after getting dirty that bounced on the board and went - and probably should have counted, but was whistled out. James had the night's most spectacular two-mates and the fans gave a big smile every time.
And for the second half - and second game, actually, since the marker was cleaned after each half - Wade, James and Bosh were all placed on the same computer.
They sat together in a game of the Miami Dolphins last week when struck: The triumvirate of power is real now.
"I just looked around," said Wade. "And then" Bron looked at both of us and said, 'This is crazy. What you do here? What am I doing here? What are we doing here together? There are still those moments ... that do not understand how they came together. But he did. And it's a special thing, especially with three kids who really enjoy each other's company. "
It is understandable that after a week of hard work, there are some tired legs on the team bus in Miami.
James shot 5-for-14. Wade shot 4 of 11. Bosh missed his first six shots before seven of their last nine.
"It was very intense," said James.
"I've never been in a more competitive field than this," said Wade, whose children sat behind a bank.
That's why Heat coach Erik Spoelstra - as always - is not overly concerned with how the offense is not in the first week of practice.
"When we go live, I have not noticed a decrease in the intensity," Spoelstra said. "I've reduced the live session, only to try to keep guys fresh and healthy as much as we can. That's not realistic, after six practices. The boys feel in their legs, but they are doing their part. They are coming early, stay late, receiving treatment for everything they can. "
Guests of the Air Force Steam filled the gym hoping to see the heat put on a show. In the end, though the game was not always pretty - the first half was 49-34, the second was 46 to 34 - were not enough surprising moments.
Perhaps the best of them all came with 13:45 left in the second half when Wade threw a balloon with Patrick Beverley, who then turned to James on the break.
Matt followed a monster, one of many that the Heat expect to see in the coming years.
"We know we can not lose the opportunity to improve," said James. "And when we're on the basketball court, if we have the opportunity to come for two hours or an hour or half hour, we need to improve. So I do not want to miss this opportunity."