As the Pacers prepared for their Friday night matchup against the Bulls, Yu Sakagami sat on a 14 hour flight, eagerly awaiting a chance to sit just two rows behind the Pacers bench.

A resident of Tokyo, Japan, Sakagami first became a fan of the Pacers in 1994 while watching Reggie Miller in the 1994 FIBA World Championship. He’s been an ardent supporter ever since.

So much so, in fact, that Sakagami flew from Tokyo to Indianapolis for just one day, and is returning back home first thing in the morning. All said, he’ll have spent over 28 hours in a plane over the course of three days; moving through time zones faster than George Hill on the break.

But not only did the Pacers make the trip worth the travel time with a 98-84 win over Chicago, but after finding out about Sakagami’s journey, the team gave him a signed Paul George jersey and photo.

When pressed by Pacers.com reporter Larra Overton as to when we could soonest get Yu back in the building for another game, he joked that his job and family make doing these whirlwind trips a bit difficult, but he hopes to be able to return again for a game at some point next season.