The Miami crowd, wearing all white, was roaring after LeBron James' deep 3-pointer from the Heat logo as the third-quarter horn sounded, pulling the high-stakes playoff game to within two points.
But James ignored it, moving toward and then locking eyes with Paul George.
"I got you back young fella!" James yelled over the sound of the buzzer.
A moment before, George had beaten James on a drive for a thunderous dunk that instantly became a career highlight for the then-Indiana Pacers guard.
"All right," George said back.
Then, as the two headed toward their benches, they exchanged a high-five, a rare but respectful acknowledgement that the fight was on.
It was in Game 2 of the 2013 Eastern Conference finals. At the time, the two stars were intensely focused on carrying their teams to a win. Now with distance, it was really the beginning of a decade-long dance between contemporary stars as James and George have played roles as rivals, near partners, and then rivals again.
Other than Paul Pierce, who perhaps was James' most intense on-floor foil, George has served as his multilayered shadow to James during his 20-year career.
As they once again prepare to face each other, when the Los Angeles Lakers play the LA Clippers Wednesday (10 p.m. ET, ESPN), here is a look back at their careers in three epochs.
