CLEVELAND, Ohio - Driving to Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse at around 4:45pm, Luke Travers had completed a day of G League training camp and expected to watch the Cavaliers host the Orlando Magic from the bench dressed in street clothes.
When Cavs rookie, Jaylon Tyson was a late scratch with right hip tightness, Travers learned he would be suiting up for the 7:00pm tip.
"Surreal. Unexpected. On the way to the game, I didn't expect anything," Travers told ESPN. "I expected to be in street clothes. I got the call; it went from there and I got ready to go."
With 3:58 on the clock in the fourth quarter and Cleveland leading 111-95, Travers was called and walked to the scorer's table, set to check into an NBA regular season game for the first time.
"A lot of emotions," Travers said of the moment. "This is obviously a dream come true, something I've worked so hard for. For it to finally happen, it's pretty special, it's something I'll never forget."
The former Perth Wildcat and Melbourne United star wasted little time making an impact, knocking down a pair of free throws for his first NBA points, before finding Tristan Thompson under the basket on a nifty shot fake and pass.
"He's so smart, the pass, the fake around, I love discovering players. It's just so fun, I'm like man, what could this guy be?" head coach Kenny Atkinson said postgame.
Travers smiled of the moment, understanding everyone in the arena suspected he would launch a 3-point attempt for his first field goal.
"I was going to let it go, I don't know if it would have gone in or not, I was pretty nervous. Also, when you first touch the ball it's kind of slippery, so two of them jumped at me and I had the dump off as well. I thought I was going to shoot it but thankfully I didn't," he said with a laugh.
All told, Travers registered four points, two rebounds, two assists and an emphatic block in under four minutes of court time.
On a night of firsts, superstar teammate Donovan Mitchell pointed out another first after his postgame chat with ESPN.
"He spoke for the first time maybe since he's been here as well," Mitchell laughed.
"He has a great feel for the game. You see with the passes he's making, as a rookie, he sees things you don't always necessarily see," Mitchell continued.
"He's going to be a good player. He's going to continue to figure it out and get better but it's good to see in his first opportunity, not only score but impact the game in a lot of ways."
Cleveland improved to 6-0 with the win, solidifying their early status as contenders to challenge the Boston Celtics for the Eastern Conference crown. Playing alongside a star-studded two-way lineup ensures the pathway to consistent rotation minutes will be a challenge for Travers, though he has embraced the winning environment.
"It's something I've always been around, the winning environment. To now be around it in the NBA, it's special. I got lucky with this group for sure, they've made me feel really welcome and everything else has been easy," he said.
A few hours ago, Travers had no idea what this night would entail. Now, sitting in front of his locker, a flight to Milwaukee awaits for the squad's back-to-back assignment in fewer than 24 hours.
Hectic, for sure. Though, the 23-year-old is prepared for the journey ahead, likely bouncing between the NBA and G League.
"It's been an adjustment. Playing [in the G League] I get the ball in my hands a lot more so the confidence level kind of skyrockets. Then you come back here, you play off the ball a lot more so it's about keeping that confidence part of it. I think it showed out there tonight after being with the G League team for the last week so I think it will be really good for me."
Though, as far as first impressions go, Travers could hardly have done more to impress.
"Everyone is saying 'hey your first points'...but he played his tail off!" Atkinson said.
"6'8", he can really pass. I love that we've gotten him to shoot the ball without hesitation, he was fun to watch tonight."
While he didn't launch that long range attempt, Travers first bucket did come on a dunk rolling to the basket off a Sam Merrill dish. The mode of score wasn't lost on Mitchell.
"He's athletic, he surprised me," the 5-time All-Star admitted.
"Hopefully we can get him to speak a little bit more too."