After a particularly wild night in New York, he slept in and missed every flight to Norfolk, where the Spirits were playing the Virginia Squires at Scope.

Barnes chartered his own plane and arrived at Scope just before the game, a woman on each arm — his companions from the previous evening — and a bag of McDonald’s burgers in his hand. He opened his full-length mink coat to reveal his Spirits’ uniform.

“Boys,” he said. “Game Time is on time!”

Benched for the first quarter, Barnes finished with 43 points and 19 rebounds.