David Moore

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Kenyon Martin needed to clear his head and escape from the playoff grind. No playbook. No 40 games in 40 nights on TNT.

What the forward did before Denver opened its series with the Mavericks was see the movie Obsessed.

Now, his obsession is Dirk Nowitzki. The movie ticket cost less than the $25,000 fine Martin received for his strong-arm tactics on the Mavericks' All-Star. But if the Nuggets advance to the Western Conference finals, the dent to Martin's bank account won't sting as much.

The dent to his reputation is already under repair.

Microfracture surgery on both knees robbed the former No. 1 pick of his athletic identity. It left him in constant pain, sullen and at odds with Denver coach George Karl.

The Kenyon Martin who returns to Dallas for Game 3 today at American Airlines Center is a different player. The forward has put "the bad attitude" behind him and is focused on what he can do to help the Nuggets win. The Bryan Adams graduate feels better physically and emotionally than he has in a long time and is excited to play against the team he followed growing up.

"It's a great feeling to go home and play in such a meaningful game," Martin said. "A great feeling. I remember when they were winning 12, 13, 14 games in Dallas.

"To be able to go there and play in front of friends and family is huge."

Martin began his NBA career in New Jersey and played with Jason Kidd. He was traded to Denver in the summer of 2004 for three first-round draft picks.

Injuries soon followed. He missed 118 games in his first three seasons with the Nuggets and underwent surgery on both knees in the span of 19 months.

Martin remembers waking up in a bad mood every day. When you're a professional basketball player and it hurts to walk, it eats away at who you are. When you can't do what you've always done on a basketball court, you sometimes lash out in frustration.

That was the dynamic Martin had with Karl and the Nuggets. Not until this season did the relationship begin to change.

"A lot of it was me getting out of my own way, know what I was capable of doing, getting past the bad attitude, injuries and everything," Martin said. "When I came in here, I was a wreck. I was no fun to be around, and I'm sure, for him, I was hard to coach.

"But knowing I'm healthy and can go out and play, it makes my mood easier to deal with and lets him coach the team and not deal with personalities. It's really putting all the differences aside and knowing there is a greater goal to accomplish and going out and doing it together."

Martin stood before his teammates in training camp and took responsibility for his actions. He told them he had been wrong to challenge Karl and the coaching staff in such a public way. He assured them it wouldn't happen again and that he supported Karl.

Karl believes that speech helped lay the groundwork for the Nuggets' transformation, which was accelerated by the acquisition of Chauncey Billups a few weeks later and one that continues to this day.

"I think it started with me letting the guys know I wasn't going to do it," Martin said. "I'm a grown man. It was just something I had to do."

The defensive aggressiveness Denver has displayed in this series starts with Martin, Dahntay Jones and Anthony Carter.

A changed man? Martin, Billups and Carmelo Anthony met with Karl before the series began to share their views and discuss how the Nuggets should proceed.

Martin was not part of those meetings in his first four years with the club. Now 31, he's at peace with where he is in his career.

"I think I can still do the same things I did in the past," Martin said. "I probably can't jump as high or run as fast as I used to. But I'm a lot better shooter through the years due to injuries and decision-making on the court.

"I'm not the best outside shooter, but I'm a decent one. Before, everything was around the rim, running and jumping and dunking all the time to doing other things to help us win. I'm probably not the first or second option on offense, but I still know I can get it done at the end of the day.

"When you're a winner and that's all you care about is your team, it's not that difficult to do. But if you're caught up in yourself, I think you fight with it."

Kenyon Martin has already waged that fight. The player you see now won. In this, his ninth season, he's invigorated.

"Somewhat," Martin said. "I feel rejuvenated where I can go out and play at a high level and compete.

"Time heals a lot of things."

Pos.: Power Forward

Ht, wt: 6-9, 240

Season: Ninth

Notable: Attended Bryan Adams High School in Dallas. ... National Player of the Year at the University of Cincinnati. ... First player taken in 2000 draft. ... Averaged 14.1 points and six rebounds for career. ... Appeared in NBA Finals twice with New Jersey. ... Played in the All-Star Game in 2004. ... Board member and active participant in the American Institute of Stuttering. ... Spokesman for the March of Dimes.