PHILADELPHIA - The Miami Heat locker room had mostly emptied out. LeBron James was already gone. Chris Bosh had just left. Most of their teammates were dressed and gone.
But as the door slowly shut, a quick glimpse said everything about the day: There stood Dwyane Wade, taking his time, enjoying the moment, a huge smile still on his face.
Thirty points, that's what he'd scored Wednesday night in the Heat's bounce-back 97-87 win against the Philadelphia 76ers. He was the picture of contentment: Looking stylish in jeans and a gray-and-white collared shirt, that same diamond earring sparkling again, and then the door closed and he was out of view.
In the hallway, people buzzed. LeBron was around the corner, talking to friends, patiently pausing to be photographed with every kid and every fan who had the nerve to ask and the luck to be able to get so close.
Bosh was not far away, in a fine suit, and he too had that winner's glow: laughing and at ease with the pressure off - for now.
"It's important (Wade played so well)," Bosh said after the game. "He's going to be one of our main guys. That's no secret here. He's going to have to play a lot of minutes and he's going to have to give us offense and defense and we're relying a lot on him."
This was a different Wade. The nerves were gone, his comfort level was high and the results were clear.
Tuesday in Boston, Wade looked like an in-over-his-head rookie, firing up lopsided shots and looking decidedly ill at ease on the floor with James.
"Some nights you can't control if the ball goes in, but you can learn from your mistakes," Wade said. "And I tried to do that tonight. What really stuck in my mind about yesterday was what LeBron said at the podium: 'We all got to do what we do.' So today I was very aggressive, attacking the rim, attacking the basket."
It worked.
Wade was indeed aggressive, and seamless and in total control. He dished out four assists, he pulled down seven rebounds, he provided the spark in the Heat's first victory of the regular season.
There were other good signs for the Heat. LeBron scored 16 points and had seven assists, and Bosh had 15 points. All told, the Big Three scored 61 points, had 20 rebounds and played fluidly with one another. James Jones got in on the act, too, scoring 20 on 6-of-9 three-point shooting.
But the story was Wade, a fact evident in the media swirling around him postgame as LeBron finished early and headed to the shower, and in the way people looked at Wade when he finally emerged from his locker room and joined his remaining teammates.
He joined LeBron and some friends in a corner of a tunnel, under a huge "Budweiser" sign. His look bordered on preppy: the jeans and collared shirt, but now wearing a sweater and brown loafers. Most eyes settled on him.
Unlike the night before, Wade lingered. He hugged friends. He and LeBron joked, often leaning in close to talk to one another. Wade paused for photographs. A crowd gathered, staring. Then it was time to go.
Wade started to slip away, but then he stopped and turned to the small crowd. It had been a good night. This time he was leaving with a message.
"I'll see you all soon!" he said. "Forty-eight hours!"
