Jason Kidd hailed the character of his Dallas Mavericks team after their gutsy win over the Denver Nuggets.

The Mavericks overcame Luka Doncic's absence, and a triple-double from returning Nuggets star Nikola Jokic, to win 123-120 in Friday's NBA Cup game.

It also marked the third consecutive game the Mavericks have had seven players hit double figures. 

The Mavericks appeared to be running away with a dominant win after leading by as many as 24 points early in the third quarter, only for the Nuggets to swiftly respond. 

They struck a fierce 28-9 run in an eight-minute span to bring the game within single digits going into the final quarter, but the Mavericks held on for a fourth straight win.

"We were here 10 days ago, we learned from that situation, we kept our composure. This group stayed together," Kidd said.  

"On the defensive end we made stops and on the offensive end we made some big plays.

"We didn't finish the game 10 days ago. But the guys stepped up. Defensively, we did what we had to do. A lot of small things that we cleaned up from the last time we were here.

"This is a character game for us. Again without Luka, on the road, we were just in this situation in Oklahoma City. The games are too close for us to make mistakes late.

"This team has a lot of character, a lot of trust and we're becoming a team - it's still early in the season, we've had some injuries, but it's about the next man up and those guys are stepping up."

Dallas (9-7) improved to 2-1 in West Group C to keep their hopes of being one of eight teams to advance to the knockout round. The Mavericks trail the Golden State Warriors, who improved to 3-0 in Group Play after Friday’s win over the New Orleans Pelicans.

It was also a night to remember for Naji Marshall, who scored a career-high 26 points off the bench. 

After scoring 15 points in the second half of Tuesday’s game against the Pelicans, Marshall scored 16 points in the first half on Friday.

Marshall had only two 15-point halves in his career prior to accomplishing the feat in consecutive halves, with Kidd showering praise for his recent displays. 

"Just the trust. Marshall was playing extremely well for us. With the game on the line, he makes a floater with one second left on the shot clock," Kidd said. 

"The confidence the guys have in him on the offensive end and defensive end [helps]."