Wade stepped into the starting lineup and scored 20 points in his first action in more than four months, and the United States beat Canada 120-65 on Friday night in the opener of its exhibition schedule.

James, the NBA’s leading scorer, missed the game because of a mildly sprained right ankle, but the Americans have plenty of offense without him. Carmelo Anthony and Michael Redd also finished with 20 points, and Kobe Bryant added 15.

The Americans made 16 of their first 20 shots and ended at 65.7 percent (44-of-67), getting plenty of layups and dunks at a sold out Thomas & Mack Center in their lone game on home soil before completing their Olympic preparations in China.

Wade was the sixth man on the Americans’ bronze medal team in the 2006 world championships, but sat out last summer following knee surgery. His left knee continued to bother him, so the Miami Heat shut down their star for the season early in March.

He resumed working out in Chicago in time to prove to USA Basketball managing director Jerry Colangelo that he was healthy enough to be picked for the team headed to Beijing. Coach Mike Krzyzewski said Wade’s strong play has been the most pleasant surprise of practice this week, and Wade said he feels healthier than he did two years ago, when he was bothered by wrist and knee pain after leading Miami to the NBA title.

Deron Williams scored 14 points and Chris Paul added 11 points and eight assists. Both are competiting for the backup point guard spot behind Jason Kidd.

James was hurt during a scrimmage on Tuesday. Though his ankle is feeling better, the U.S. staff preferred to rest him to avoid further swelling before the long plane flight to China this weekend.

The Americans continue their preparations in China, playing two games in Macau and two more in Shanghai before arriving in Beijing. They face the host Chinese in their opener on Aug. 10.