"The change came in James Anderson not long into one of his first games at the Impact Competitive Basketball series last week.

The second-year Spurs guard-forward was driving to the hoop, through a thicket of bodies, when an arm reached down and knocked the ball from his hands, making ample contact with his wrist and forearm in the process.

Hearing no whistle, Anderson did something completely out of character. He opened his mouth.

"That's a foul!" the 22-year-old known to even his closest friends as "Quiet James" bellowed at the nearest official.

A few feet away, Joe Abunassar — the Las Vegas-based trainer whose gym hosted the so-called "Lockout League" and who has been working with Anderson since early June — couldn't help but smile. For him, there was something heartening about watching Anderson finally behave as if he were entitled to a call."