In a lot of ways, this is the game Orlando Magic rookies Jase Richardson and Noah Penda have played their entire lives. It is still rolling the ball out to play five-on-five and going out and playing basketball.
The lines are all the same. The hoops are still 10 feet tall. The game is still the game.
Still, in so many other ways, this is different.
This is playing in the Magic's giant practice facility, its logo emblazoned everywhere you could look with all the bells and whistles that come with an NBA facility.
There are still NBA coaches on the sideline. Players you grew up watching on TV on the sidelines cheering you on or pulling you aside to offer advice. Future All-Stars are waiting for their turn to take the court.
It does hit you in the face sometimes that you are walking into a dream.
"When I signed my contract, this makes me feel official," Penda said after the Magic's Summer League practice on Monday. "Getting in the gym every day is something I have done for my whole career now. Just being around NBA guys. I saw Tyus Jones this morning. Jonathan Isaac is a guy I used to watch on TV. Now I am practicing with him, so it is starting to kick in a little bit. It's crazy."
Every player surely has that pinch-me moment, even if they have been around the league for much of their lives. There will be more of those moments.
But there is still work to do. So much work to do.
Summer League is the first step for rookies
Summer League is the first step even if it is not the full step toward the NBA.
The Orlando Magic's two rookies are expected to do a lot. All rookies are. They are getting a lot thrown at them. And they are diving headfirst into their new league and new jobs with their new team.
The trip to Las Vegas is the chance to start putting all that new information into practice and work as the Magic start to figure out what they have for the upcoming season.
"It's been a short time, but the amount that they have picked up in such a short time, their willingness to learn, how coachable they are, both of them are doing exactly what we asked to a tee," Summer League coach Ameer Bahhur said. "It's been awesome seeing the first couple of days. It will take them a long way."
Summer League is not always about production. It is about introduction.
As president of basketball operations Jeff Weltman put it, there is a difference between basketball IQ and NBA IQ. Summer League is where new players get introduced to what it is like to play in the NBA.
That is something both Jase Richardson and Noah Penda are looking forward to.
Richardson is eager to see how he measures up physically to this next level. He knows that is a big part of success in the league from watching the playoffs.
Richardson will be entering Summer League a little banged up. He has a sore right ankle that has held him out of practice. But both Richardson and Magic officials anticipate he will be set to play for Thursday's opener in Las Vegas.
Penda too is eager to dive into the NBA. He knows that the NBA game is different from the pro leagues he has played in France. So he wants to spend the next week adjusting to the rules and understanding how the Magic and the league want him to work.
Learning the Orlando Magic's style
The Orlando Magic care less about the stats they produce and more about how they compete and show they understand the way the Magic want them to play.
"We're trying to carry over our style of play from the Magic," Ameer Bahhur said. "We talk to these guys about being the most physical team, being relentless, our style of play that we show on the court. How much of that can we accomplish in two weeks? Defensively it's physicality, it's relentlessness. Offensively, we're asking these guys to play fast and be unselfish."
That is what the Magic are hoping to get out of it too. This is an introduction to the way the team wants to play and the style they will bring in the regular season. These are checkpoints for young players like Jase Richardson, Noah Penda, Tristan da Silva and Ethan Thompson.
The Magic play a physical style of basketball. They want to see their players compete and get after it defensively. Part of the goal for Summer League is to begin integrating them into their culture and their team.
That is ultimately what they will be judged on.
Magic's rookies will take their first steps
As is the case every year, this is the part where the rookies absorb everything new. Just getting them on an NBA floor is a victory in itself.
The first step is diving in headfirst and making these dreams real. It is an introductory course to the league.
"It still doesn't feel real honestly," Jase Richardson said after practice Monday. "Just going through all the practices, being with the guys, getting accustomed to it. It still doesn't feel real. I think once I get that first Summer League game, it's going to start feeling real."
Things will feel real very quickly as they get their first taste of the Orlando Magic and the NBA. These are the first steps in what the Magic hope is a long career.