DALLAS — Nights in Lithuania were, many times, sleepless for Ty Lawson, whose body never really adjusted to the nine-hour time difference from Denver. So he would go to the gym.

“There was nothing for me to do over there but play basketball,” said Lawson, who played for Lithuanian club Zalgiris Kaunas during the NBA lockout. “Sometimes I went to the gym at 2 o’clock in the morning and just shot. … I was a gym rat over there.”

The NBA payoff was immediate.

Lawson sprinted out of the gate, hitting eight of his first nine shots on the way to a game-high 27 points for the Nuggets, who started this lockout- shortened season with a stylish 115-93 win over the Dallas Mavericks on Monday night at the American Airlines Center.

“It was pretty impressive the way we went about what we had to do,” Nuggets coach George Karl said. “We knew we had a team that played (Sunday), and the pace of the game has always been our advantage against Dallas.”

That began with Lawson. The third-year speedster displayed quickness when he needed to, patience when it was warranted and a deft shooting touch from all over the court. He scored 12 points of his total in the first quarter.

And with Lawson rolling, most of his teammates followed suit. The Nuggets played like a well-oiled machine, as if the season were already the two months old it was supposed to be.

“You know, it’s on all of us, but it’s on me more than anybody,” said Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle, whose team was blown out at home for a second straight game. “I’ve got to get these guys ready to play.”

This game, like late last season after the Carmelo Anthony trade, was fun on the run.

The Nuggets feasted on the defending champions in a number of ways:

From the point guard spot: Ty Lawson and Andre Miller generally did whatever they wanted to do, whenever they wanted. Lawson was scorching from the field early as Dallas didn’t appear interested in defending him. Besides his 27 points, Lawson finished with four assists and four rebounds, which were complemented nicely by Miller’s 18 points, five rebounds and five assists.

Karl ended up playing the two on the court together for large portions of the second quarter, and they delivered.

From the bench: The other part of Miller’s value was his points provided instant punch off the bench. And he was not alone. Al Harrington had the best four-minute stretch of any player, scoring eight points in the final four minutes of the first half. He finished with 18 points, and the Nuggets’ bench outscored Dallas’ 53-50.

On the glass: Dallas missed 22 shots in the first half; the Nuggets collected the rebound on 20 of them. Dallas had just one offensive rebound as the Nuggets turned good defense into one-shot-and-out possessions for the Mavericks. Danilo Gallinari and Nene led the Nuggets with seven rebounds apiece as Denver outrebounded Dallas 47-37.

Points off turnovers: The Nuggets turned 20 turnovers into 26 points. Many of that total came via the fast break, in which the Nuggets racked up 20 points.

The Nuggets separated themselves in the second quarter, outscoring the Mavericks 37-19 to make a nine-point lead a 27-point lead at halftime. Lawson had 21 points at the half.

Nothing changed in the second half.

The Nuggets led by as many as 33 and cruised.

“We played our game, on defense and offense,” Gallinari said. “When we are aggressive on the defensive end, our offense just comes naturally. We played a great game.”

Christopher Dempsey: 303-954-1279 or cdempsey@denverpost.com



Nuggets Recap

What you might have missed

Former Nuggets forward Kenyon Martin attended the game, which was played in his hometown. Martin watched from a baseline seat with a friend. After the game, he chatted with the Nuggets in the locker room.

Final thought

The Nuggets started the season in the best way possible. This was a dominating performance against the defending NBA champion Mavericks.

Up next

Utah, Wednesday, 7 p.m.

Chris Dempsey, The Denver Post