The Washington Wizards rolled out of town with a 102-91 victory at American Airlines Center to spoil the debut of Shawn Marion

Gilbert Arenas torched the Mavericks with 29 points and nine assists and the Wizards got 20 points from Andrey Blatche and 19 from Randy Foye, both off the bench, as they led virtually throughout against the Maverick , who seemed a step slow all night.

Except for Nowitzki, who finished with 34 points and nine rebounds. He came back from a 3-of-13 shooting start, but he didn't get nearly enough help from the other Mavericks .

Marion had only six points through three quarters and finished with 16. Jason Terry had 12 and J.J. Barea had 13. But 39.5-percent shooting, not to mention sloppy defense and poor rebounding doomed them. It's the second season in a row they've lost the season opener at home. Last year, they were 0-4 before coming alive on the home floor.

Sooner than later for Howard? Mark Cuban said that any speculation that Josh Howard was three weeks or longer away from returning might be off base.

Before Tuesday's game, Cuban clarified comments by coach Rick Carlisle that Howard was "weeks away." Cuban said he didn't want fans to get the impression that it was three weeks or longer.

"And, based on the report I heard today, it's not going to be a few weeks for Josh," Cuban said. "I think it might be sooner than we expect. I think Josh is getting antsy, too. I don't think it's going to be three weeks. I think it could be as few as two weeks."

Still, the Mavericks will have to survive without one of their key cogs for at least another five games.

"We're losing an all-star caliber player," Cuban said. "But I think we're deeper than we were last year."

Why not Mavs? It might have been a little bit of coach-speak, but Washington's Flip Saunders sounded genuine in his belief that the Mavericks are legitimate Western Conference threats.

"No one talks about them, but the addition of Shawn [Marion] has really added to them," Saunders said. "[If] you get Josh back, they have a chance to contend with all these teams in the West.

"If they don't get any major injuries and they get Josh back, then there is no reason they can't compete with the Lakers and San Antonio."

Briefly: Renowned pianist Bruce Hornsby, a close friend of coach Rick Carlisle's, performed a smooth, jazzy rendition of the national anthem. ... Warren LeGarie, Carlisle's agent, also was in town to help celebrate the coach's birthday. ... Dirk Nowitzki trimmed his long blond locks before the opener. He still had plenty of hair, but he hadn't seen the shears since the Olympic rings were etched into his hair for the Beijing Olympics in August 2008.