At six in the evening, New York time, there were still exactly three hours until Game 2 of the NBA Finals tipped off.
The exterior lights of Madison Square Garden had not yet fully lit up.
But inside the arena, the home team's practice court was already brightly illuminated.
In the Los Angeles Lakers' visiting warm-up area, a lean, upright figure had long since taken his place.
Kobe Bryant had arrived at the arena early, several hours ahead of everyone else on the team.
After the regret of missing the game-winner in Game 1, he showed not the slightest sign of wallowing or discouragement.
Compared to intense physical training, Kobe was especially restrained and rational tonight.
He did not crazily attack the basket and drain his body. Throughout the session, he did only one thing.
Steady, monotonous, and extreme shooting warm-ups and touch calibration.
Three-pointers, pull-up mid-range jumpers, free-throw-line jumpers, turnaround fadeaways.
Every shooting motion was textbook-perfect, his rhythm even and his control of force precise.
He was deliberately trying to recover the shooting touch he had lost from exhaustion in the fourth quarter of Game 1.
He was deliberately refining a finishing rhythm that would remain steady even as his stamina declined.
The trainer sat by the court before a tablet, playing Game 1 footage frame by frame.
After every set of shots, Kobe immediately stopped and stepped forward to review it.
His eyes were locked onto the screen, unwilling to overlook even the tiniest flaw.
"In the final eight seconds, your center of gravity leaned too far forward."
"When your stamina was depleted, there was a slight deviation in the force from your fingertips."
The trainer spoke quietly as he reviewed the play, precisely identifying the core issue behind the missed game-winner.
Kobe nodded slightly, his gaze focused