Because so many of the players had been in town for weeks meant the tone of the first practice of the Tom Thibodeau era didn't come as a surprise.
People knew what to expect.
"It was very intense," Andrew Wiggins said. "But we've been at it for three weeks now. We knew what he was expecting. So we came out here and we worked hard. We gave no reason for him to get mad and make us go harder."
So, with Duke coach Mike Krzyzeweki and his staff, former Wolves assistant and head coach Randy Wittman and Gophers coach Richard Pitino looking on, Thibodeau kicked off camp with a determination to build a base of skill and fundamentals before adding layers of offensive and defensive intricacies.