DENVER — Only hours remain before one of the NBA's juiciest rivalries is renewed.

Not the Mavericks and Denver Nuggets. I was talking about J.R. Smith and Mark Cuban. I'm sure the two have been tweeting back and forth in anticipation of Sunday's Game 1.

"No," Smith said, throwing cold water on that theory. "We don't twitter."

Too bad. Based on previous exchanges between the two, it would be highly entertaining.

The relationship between one of the league's most volatile guards and its most volatile owner is a tantalizing subtext to this series. But the Mavericks have more strategic concerns.

The Mavericks knew there was only so much they could do against San Antonio's Tony Parker and Tim Duncan in the first round. Their defensive emphasis after that was to corral Roger Mason and Matt Bonner.

Denver's Carmelo Anthony will score in bunches, and Chauncey Billups will keep the Nuggets under control. These things will happen no matter what the Mavericks do defensively in this series.

What they can't do is let Smith get away from them.

"I always consider myself the X factor," Smith said. "At the end of the day, I feel as long as I play well, we win."

Smith is as important to the Nuggets as Jason Terry is to the Mavericks. He's the sixth man who can tip this series in Denver's favor with his superior athletic ability and 3-point marksmanship.

Terry deserved the league's Sixth Man award. Smith conceded that Saturday, saying the Mavericks guard started strong and was more consistent than him over the course of the season.

But Smith finished with a flourish. He averaged 17.8 points in March and 22.4 points in April. He had games of 28, 35 and 45 points in the final seven games of the regular season.

Denver coach George Karl likes to say he'll, "take wild, but I can't handle crazy" when it comes to Smith. He gladly takes what he's gotten from his young guard over the last two months.

"He's an energetic guy who can flat out put the ball in the basket," Mavericks coach Rick Carlisle. "When he comes in, he comes in guns-a-blazing.

"You have to know where he is and do a good job on him. Even when you guard him well, I mean, he can take one or two dribbles and jump over you and shoot from anywhere."

The Mavericks want to deny Smith the ball. The Nuggets often negate that by letting him bring the ball up the court. Dallas will jump him around the 3-point arch and try to get the ball out of his hands.

Antoine Wright will have the primary defensive responsibility of slowing Smith.

"You can't let him get into a rhythm," Wright said. "That's when he starts shooting them from half court.

"I always try to touch him, nag him a little bit, try to have him thinking more about me than he is about getting his shot off."

An elbow Smith threw in Wright's direction at the Pepsi Center in January is what sparked the verbal dispute between Smith and Cuban and eventually led to the latest fine for the Mavericks owner.

Several days ago, when asked about Cuban, Smith said, "I'm not a big fan of his and I think everybody knows that." He was more politic on the eve of the series opener.

"He's a funny guy to go at it with," Smith said. "I mean, he's one of the better owners in the league. He really cares about his team and the players. So, it's fun."

No tweets. But has he gotten any e-mails from Cuban?

"Not yet," Smith said. "I'm sure by Game 3, he will send something.

"I'm sure he's going to say something and we will come back with something."

Let the rivalry resume.