It seems every step Michael Beasley has taken since he left Kansas State has been televised in some fashion.

You saw him buying a suit and preparing for the ESPYs and practicing with his old high school coach and experiencing each second of draft night.

Sunday's events were slightly more significance in Beasley's NBA growth.

But this evolution wasn't televised.

So unless you were among the pockets of fans inside AmericanAirlines Arena on Sunday night, you missed Beasley's first true taste of NBA basketball.

It tastes like freedom.

LOST IN THE SHUFFLE

To opposing defenses, Beasley has never been a secondary concern. He has never been considered a complement. He has never, even for a second, been ignored. Not in any of his high schools. Not at Kansas State. Not in summer league.

On a team with Dwyane Wade and Shawn Marion and a smattering of shooters, Beasley will be all of those things. It means he will have more space, more freedom, than he has ever been accustomed to. And it seems to work for him.

ADJUSTMENT

''It's different,'' Beasley said with a smirk. ``It's new. I'm kind of getting used to it. I think everybody's going to like it. I just have to get used to it.''

It was just one preseason contest -- one quarter of a preseason contest, really -- but Beasley found that not being the most-feared player on the court can certainly work in his favor.

It's a concept Dwyane Wade became familiar with while on his most recent Olympic squad. It's a lot easier to shoot 67 percent, as Wade did in his gold quest, when you can lurk on the baseline while LeBron James and Kobe Bryant draw all the attention.

''It can be an opportunity for him to really let loose and show his talent and athletic ability,'' Wade said. ``I think it'll be good for him.''

Beasley isn't exactly joining an NBA Dream Team in his rookie season. But just getting the chance to operate against a single defender every once in a while is a pretty liberating feeling for the player who constantly took on multiple defenders while averaging 26 points in college.

Once Beasley teamed up with the Heat regulars to start the third quarter -- he started the game on the bench -- the 19-year-old put on an exhibition of offensive moves against the Pistons. The actual Pistons, too, not the training-camp version of the Pistons that were on the floor in the fourth quarter and overtime.

There was Beasley's crossover and finish over Rasheed Wallace for a three-point play.

There was his two-handed dunk off a feed from Wade, who had every defender's eyes on him.

There was his fake-baseline, spin-middle move against Amir Johnson.

There was one-handed lefty finish while fending off Jason Maxiell with his right.

''Jason Maxiell -- I don't think I played against someone that size in my life,'' Beasley said. But the fend-and-finish was ``just natural.''

By the time his 20 minutes, 40 seconds of time of the floor were through, the No. 2 pick had 16 points, 13 of them coming in the third quarter, on 6-of-11 shooting with six rebounds and an assist.

If there were any concerns that his game wouldn't translate to the NBA because he's stuck between forward positions or relies more on touch than power, Sunday's debut should ease some of them.

His limbs don't look as long as Wallace's. His body isn't nearly as wide Maxiell's. But he's still able to not only score against those players but rebound with them, too.

''He does have a 7-1 wingspan,'' Heat coach Erik Spoelstra said, warning that Beasley might not be a 'tweener after all. ``He's 19 years old. His body is going to fill out. He has instincts to rebound. He has the ability to be physical. He just has to learn what NBA physical is.''

There are still plenty more lessons to come, of course. Beasley, himself, declared his defense awful Sunday. ''One person can mess the whole defense up,'' he said. ``And for the most part, it was me.''

But Sunday he learned what space looks like. He recognized what being stealthy felt like. He tasted freedom on hardwood, and it was exquisite.

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