In Ty Lawson's mind, the Denver Nuggets -- currently 42-22 -- would not be much different if Carmelo Anthony were still with the team and decided to be a Nugget for life.

"I think it would be the same," Lawson said. "Melo actually is playing better in New York."

Even so, the Nuggets' roster has been shaped mostly through the trade of Anthony two seasons ago. And Lawson admits there are now more weapons across the roster.

"We've gotten better on defense, but I think we'd still be the exact same at where we are," Lawson said. "Melo brought the scoring aspect, but I think we'd be the same. ... I think we're a little more dangerous. You don't know where our scoring is coming from. With Melo, everybody had their focus on him. With us, JaVale might step up. Gallo, Iguodala, we've got weapons all over the place."