CLEVELAND – Eddie Jones knows it's not going to be like this all the time. There will be some rough times.

But there was nothing but smiles in the locker room after the game for the way he and Trenton Hassell handled the job of defending LeBron James in the season opener.

Turns out they had some added motivation – the 70 points James scored on the Mavericks in two meetings last season.

"They've been throwing it down our throats," Jones said. "You watch ESPN, and he averaged 35 against us last year. You just got to come out and defend. Maybe he'll get 35 again, but you got to make him work for it."

Perhaps James has had worse games, but it's hard to imagine a worse half of basketball than the first 24 minutes Wednesday night.

Jones and Hassell deserve at least some of the credit for James' no-point, three-foul, two-turnover half, when he went 0-for-4 from the field.

There also was some solid help defense against the King. It was arguably his worst game as a pro, although his lowest total is five points. The final line Wednesday: 10 points, 2-for-11 shooting, 6-for-10 from the free throw line.

He needed a garbage-time bucket to reach double figures and outscore DeSagana Diop by two points.

"Tonight, the most valuable players are Trenton Hassell and Eddie Jones," said Jason Terry. "The way they defended LeBron James and made it tough on him, that's the reason why we brought them here."

The reason the Mavericks need them couldn't have been any clearer. They are defenders first.

"They were great," said Dirk Nowitzki, who along with Diop helped converge on James whenever he got past the primary defender. "We got them for perimeter defense. They don't care if they score or not. They're out there to make things hard for the best scorer on the other team."

James blamed his poor night on a combination of things, not the least of which was a sour shooting night.

"They doubled me for the most part, and I got on the post and tried to look for guys that were open," he said. "But I missed a lot of easy shots. We just have to knock those down."

He also took exception to an offensive foul called in the second quarter as he drove into Nowitzki.

But one play didn't define this night. It was the consistent play of the Mavericks' defense.

"Eddie made the all-defensive team a couple times, and I'm just trying to get known for that," Hassell said. "That's what my role is. It kind of helps when you got another player who can play defense as well. Eddie started out great. He kept him from getting off to a fast start. And I just came in and tried to do my best and then let Eddie get back to it. We got different styles. I'm more physical, and he's quicker than me."

It was a nice tag team on opening night.