Marc Gasol posted an impressive 26-point, five-rebound, six-assist, three-steal and three-block line against the Clippers on Sunday. Perhaps most amazing of all, Gasol’s 13-of-18 shooting today brings him to 59-of-76 (78%) over his last eight games. Gasol is emerging into a potential NBA all-star and a very efficient, effective player. His hot stretch shooting will end sooner than later, but ride the wave while you can.

Elsewhere around the NBA:

Houston: Houston Rockets F Luis Scola left Sunday’s game 22 seconds into the first quarter after getting poked in the eye by the Thunder’s Etan Thomas. Expect Scola to be day-to-day.

Boston: Kevin Garnett shot a near-perfect 11-of-12 from the field to score 24 points with eight rebounds, one assist and one steal in the Boston Celtics’ 92-85 win over the Heat on Sunday. At times, Garnett still appears to be struggling with injuries but the big-ticket is still better than most.

Philadelphia: Eddie Jordan admitted that the Sixers have held conversations about Allen Iverson, and other free agents, just an hour after saying certainly that “he had not talked to anyone about Allen Iverson.” We all know that coaches bend the truth, but it’s always nice to see it happen on an hour-by-hour basis.

Detroit: Charlie Villanueva announced Sunday on his Twitter account that he will have surgery on his broken nose Monday, and we’re calling his status for Wednesday’s game “questionable.”

Detroit: Ben Wallace grabbed a season-high 18 rebounds on Sunday, and added 10 points to go with two steals and two assists.

San Antonio: Manu Ginobili (groin) will play Sunday against the Sixers, but Roger Mason (hamstring) will not. “If he got over 20 minutes, I’d be very surprised,” coach Gregg Popovich said.

Phoenix: The Associated Press updated a post-game report identifying that Leandro Barbosa left Sunday’s game due to an ankle injury, not Amare Stoudemire.

New Orleans: Peja Stojakovic will not play against the Sacramento Kings on Sunday due to personal reasons.
Peja was also suffering from an illness, but this adds a new wrinkle to his situation as he hasn’t even made the trip to Sacramento. It’s unclear at this time whether he’ll be able to meet the team in Los Angeles to play the Lakers on Tuesday. The Nets have just two games next week, and Peja belongs on the bench.

Fox Sports’ Stephen A. Smith is reporting that the Sixers appear to be on the verge of signing Allen Iverson, possibly as early as in the upcoming week. With rookie Jrue Holiday set to fill in for Lou Williams over the next two months, the Sixers could use the help. In addition, the number of tickets that Iverson would sell has to interest Philly. “We simply can’t just ignore the upside he’d bring,” a team source said. “Not with our situation.” Iverson appears to be buncing around the league like a pin-ball this season.

Elsewhere around the NBA:

Orlando: The Orlando Magic narrowly defeated the Bucks on Saturday, 100-98, led by Dwight Howard’s 25 points, 20 rebounds and four blocks. In the past two games, Howard is averaging 3.5 points, 18.5 rebounds, and 4.0 blocks. Even though he went 5-of-10 from the free-throw line, Howard is emerging as the leagues most dominate center.

Milwakee: Bucks forward Ersan Ilyasova scored 20 points and pulled down a career-high 16 rebounds vs. the Magic on Saturday. Ilyasova shed his protective facemask before the game, but he wasn’t tentative whatsoever. He connected on 8-of-18 FGs, including two 3-pointers, and looks like a waiver wire steal.

Utah: Jazz PF Carlos Boozer’s continued his stellar play on Saturday, as he led the Utah Jazz with 26 points (11-of-16 FGs), 12 rebounds, seven assists, one steal and one block. Boozer has been on fire as of late, scoring 20+ points in seven of the last eight games. He is also averaging 5.0 assists over the past five games, a trend we hope (but are skeptical) he can sustain.

Utah: Jazz F Andrei Kirilenko strained his back during Saturday’s game and will not return in the second half. Kirilenko has been playing well recently and hopes to make it back on the court soon.

Cleveland: Cavs PG Mo Williams made 7-of-7 three-pointers on Saturday, scoring 25 points in a win over the Mavericks. He had one assist, zero steals and four turnovers (atrocious numbers for any PG), but we’re still seeing sevens. And if you had lingering questions about his sore right middle finger, consider this the answer.

Cleveland: Delonte West racked up 10 points and 10 assists for the Cleveland Cavaliers on Saturday, playing 28 inspired minutes off the bench.

Charlotte: Gerald Wallace posted 14 points and 14 rebounds on Saturday, leading the Bobcats to their fourth straight victory. Wallace has six consecutive double-doubles, and he’s starting to make his three-pointers. He has made 5-of-10 threes in the past two games after shooting 3-of-21 (14%) in the first 14 games

1. Celtics (12-4): Have done nothing to lose the top spot.
2. Lakers (11-3): Getting healthy is dangerous for rest of the NBA.
3. Suns (13-3): Hanging around at the top.
4. Nuggets (12-4): Very strong team.
5. Hawks (12-4): Young players continue to get better.
6. Magic (12-4): Howard is an advantage against any team.
7. Mavericks (12-4): This team could be scary good.
8. Cavaliers (11-5): James gets you in the top ten.
9. Trail Blazers (12-6): They will go as far as Oden will take them.
10. Heat (9-6): Hanging around the top ten thus far.
11. Thunder (9-7): One of the youngest teams and getting better.
12. Spurs (8-6): Built for the playoffs.
13. Jazz (8-7): Playing better now, finally.
14. Bucks (8-6): Had some bad early season breaks.
15. Pacers (6-8): Nothing really to day.
16. Rockets (8-8): Beat a good Kings team at home this week.
17. Kings (7-8): Look out for this team down the stretch.
18. Bulls (6-8): Should be better than this.
19. Bobcats (6-9): They have a little winning streak going.
20. Raptors (7-10): Their best player is gone in the offseason.
21. Clippers (7-10): Break this team up now!
22. Hornets (7-9): Should be a playoff team, what happened?
23. Warriors (5-9): The bad seed is gone.
24. Grizzlies (6-10): Lakers trade starting to pay dividends.
25. Pistons (5-11): Offseason moves are not paying off.
26. 76ers (5-11): Here comes Iverson!
27. Wizard (2-7): Getting healthy.
28. Knicks (3-13): Terrible.
29. Timberwolves (1-15): Horrible.
30. Nets (0-16): Will they ever win?

Monta Ellis set a season-high in scoring for the second straight night on Wednesday, scoring 42-points on 16-of-25 shooting with four rebounds, four assists, three steals and one block. The 42 points also tied a career-high for Ellis. Just a day after playing all 48 minutes, Ellis went for 44 minutes tonight and there’s no reason to think he won’t keep it up with the Warriors so short-handed. Is Ellis still on the trading block?

Elsewhere around the NBA:

New Jersey: Brook Lopez had 32 points, 14 rebounds, a steal and two blocks on 13-of-25 shooting as the New Jersey Nets lost by 10 to the Blazers to run their record to 0-15. They’re two losses from starting out 0-17 to match the 1988-89 Heat for the worst start in NBA history.

New Jersey: Devin Harris hit just 2-of-6 shots for six points, three assists and two steals as the Nets lost again on Wednesday. He’s clearly not at 100 percent but is at least playing through his groin injury.

Indiana: Pacers beat reporter Mike Wells reports that Danny Granger will not play on Wednesday due to a sprained left MCL.

Portland: Blazers C Greg Oden had 18 points, eight boards, a steal and four more blocks in Wednesday’s win over the Nets. Oden is having a good year and is starting to pay dividends as the No. 1 overall pick. If the Portland Trail Blazers are going to advance in the playoffs, he will need to play well and stay healthy.

Houston: Rockets F/C Carl Landry hit 9-of-11 shots and had a team-high 24 points to go along with six boards in Wednesday’s loss. Landry is quietly having a good year.

Dallas Mavericks: Jason Terry hit 10-of-11 shots and all four of his 3-point attempts on his way to 27 points and a season-high 10 assists on Wednesday. Look for Terry to win the fifth man of the year award.

Dallas: Jason Kidd had nine points and seven assists to pass Mark Jackson for No. 2 on the all-time assists list with 10,337. He still has a long way to go to catch John Stockton at 15,806, but this is quite a milestone for Kidd

Dallas: Shawn Marion had 12 points, three boards and one assist in 31 minutes after missing a few games with an ankle injury. He’ll be better on most nights, but the time off with the injury obviously negatively impacted him tonight.

Sacramento G Tyreke Evans wasn’t slowed by his recent finger and ankle injuries on Monday, as he posted 28 points (10-of-18 FGs, 7-of-7 FTs), four rebounds, four assists in yet another very good game in a loss to Memphis. Evans has now scored 20+ points in seven consecutive games. Without Kevin Martin he’s firmly established as the Sacramento Kings No. 1 option offensively, which is great news for the young Kings.

Elsewhere around the NBA:

Milwaukee: Bucks SG Michael Redd will come off the Bucks’ bench on Monday, his first action after missing nine games with a strained left patella tendon. “[Redd will] probably not play a lot of minutes or anything,” said coach Scott Skiles. “Just get his feet back under him in a game and see how it goes.” This should hurt the production of Luke Ridnour and Carlos Delfino, but the Bucks went 7-2 without Redd and it sounds like he’ll be worked back slowly.

Utah: Utah Jazz C Mehmet Okur returned to practice Monday after missing three games with flu-like symptoms.
Okur tested negative for the H1N1 virus. He should be ready to go against the Thunder on Tuesday and Kyrylo Fesenko will take his rightful place on the bench.

Washington: An MRI revealed no structural damage in Caron Butler’s right foot/ankle and he is considered a game-time decision on Tuesday.

Washington: Wizards guard Mike Miller will miss three-to-six weeks with a strained calf. Nick Young will start at SG on Tuesday, but but DeShawn Stevenson and Randy Foye will also get increased minutes in Miller’s absence.

Houston: Rockets G Tracy McGrady (knee) practiced Monday, but his status for Wednesday’s game against the Mavericks remains in doubt. The Rockets aren’t eager to insert McGrady into a lineup, but if he does suit up he will eat into the minutes of Trevor Ariza, Shane Battier and Chase Budinger.

Memphis: Memphis Grizzlies F/C Marc Gasol had another solid game in the teams victory on Monday, posting 18 points on 8-of-10 shooting, six rebounds, three assists, two steals and four blocks. For the season, Gasol is averaging 15.2 points on 61% shooting, 11.1 rebounds, 1.2 steals and 1.7 blocks.

Dallas: Mavericks SF Shawn Marion (ankle) went through some of Monday’s practice and is questionable to play on Tuesday. “It’s still tender,” Marion said. “I can’t push off the way I want to. We want to get it back as close to 100 percent as we can.” Expect Marion to be a game-time decision.

Gilbert Arenas accused his teammates of having “hidden agendas” after Saturday’s loss, which dropped the Wizards to 3-9. Arenas mentioned that eight of his teammates will be free agents this summer. “I converted my game to try to get people involved, but at the end of the day, to be honest, this is the same team since three years ago,” he said. “Do I have to go in attack mode like I was two years ago to get us over this hump? I hope not…I think the only person who actually had to sacrifice is me. Everybody else can just play their game.” Is Arenas trying to be the team captain or does is he complaining about not scoring enough? It remains to be seen whether this diatribe awakens the Wizards or makes things even worse.

Elsewhere around the NBA:

Houston: Houston Rockets swingman Tracy McGrady did not attend Saturday’s game or go through his customary pregame workout because of a sore back. Rather than have an MRI on Monday for his knee, it appears he’s having one Sunday for his back and his knee. It remains to be seen if McGrady will ever play in the NBA again.

Los Angelas: Lakers C Andrew Bynum (ankle) returned to action Sunday against the Thunder, scoring 25 points on 9-of-11 shooting (7-of-7 from the foul line) with nine rebounds, one steal and two blocks. Bynum only played 28 minutes because the Los Angelas Lakers had such a big lead.

Los Angelas: Lakers F Lamar Odom scored just two points in the Lakers’ blowout win over the Thunder on Sunday, and added five rebounds and two assists. Another victom of the Lakers great play: Odem only played 19 minutes due to the blowout.

Atlanta: Hawks PG Mike Bibby’s sprained left ankle is “very sore”, but he is still listed as “day-to-day” according to the Atlanta Hawks‘ team spokesperson. It appears that Bibby’s injury is not a high ankle sprain so he could see the court relatively quickly.

Oakland: Oakland Warriors G Stephen Curry is being more aggressive offensively according to assistant coach Keith Smart. “He’s coming down and taking a shot without worrying if he should have taken the shot,” said Smart. As expected, the trade of Stephen Jackson is opening things up for Curry, who is a nice, albeit risky buy low target right now.

Phoenix: Phoenix Suns PG Steve Nash scored 20 points on 7-of-8 shooting (including a three) with zero rebounds and nine assists in 28 minutes of action Sunday. Nash and the rest of the starters sat for most of the fourth quarter as the Suns were in the midst of a blowout.

In what seems to be a continuing theme young players playing well, Kings center Spencer Hawes tied his career-high with 24 points on Saturday, adding nine rebounds, two assists and two blocks in a loss to the Rockets. Hawes was 10-of-16 from the field and even made his first 3-pointers of the season, going 2-of-3 from downtown. The Kings have reportedly been shopping around for another center (rumors linked them to Samuel Dalembert) but hopefully a few more games like this will curb that impulse.

Elsewhere around the NBA:

Portland: Trail Blazers guard/forward Martell Webster started Saturday’s game over Andre Miller, finishing with a season-high 21 points 13 rebounds in only 31 minutes of work. Webster made 7-of-13 FGs and 4-of-7 three-pointers, with two assists, one turnover and seems to have landed a starting role in Portland Trail Blazers.

Chicago: Bulls PG Derrick Rose broke out for a season-high 28 points against the Nuggets on Saturday, making 11-of-20 FGs and 6-of-7 FTs with six rebounds, three assists and one steal. Rose continues to struggle with turnovers, committing five more on Saturday, and defense but no argument came be made against his offensive talent.

Denver: Nuggets SF Carmelo Anthony continued his stellar play while scoring 30 points on Saturday as the Denver Nuggets defeated the Bulls for their 15th consecutive home victory. Melo has scored 30+ points in nine of his first 13 games this season and appears to be a threat to win the scoring title.

San Antonio: San Antonio Spurs PG Tony Parker returned from a sprained ankle on Saturday, scoring 17 points, grabbing six rebounds and handing out eight assists in 32 minutes of play. Parker appeared to be playing well and not showing any ill effects from the injury.

Milwaukee: Bucks rookie guard Brandon Jennings scored 26 points on Saturday (24 of them coming in the second half) as the Bucks defeated the Grizzlies and improved their record to 8-3.

Detroit: Pistons G Ben Gordon scored 25 points in an overtime loss to the Jazz on Saturday, going 10-of-20 from the field, 2-of-4 from downtown, and 3-of-4 from the FT line. He added five rebounds, three assists and two steals, which is icing on the cake for Detroit’s explosive scoring guard. And after sitting out nearly all of the fourth quarter on Thursday, he logged 47 minutes in this game.

Utah: Jazz F Paul Millsap needed five stitches to close a gash above his right eye sustained during Saturday’s game, though he returned and played 34 minutes. Millsap, who had just four points (2-of-6 FGs), four rebounds and two steals, shouldn’t be in danger of missing any games.

Houston: Rockets forward Carl Landry scored 20 points and grabbed seven rebounds in 25 minutes against the Kings on Saturday. Landry made 6-of-8 FGs and 8-of-8 FTs, building on his recent string of excellent performances. He even blocked a shot, ending his block-less streak at three games.

It turns out that former NBA player Jayson Williams will not be in a New Jersey courtroom on Friday. State Superior Court Judge Edward M. Coleman delayed a hearing in Somerville in which Williams was expected to plead guilty, indefinitely. A person with direct Knowledge of the situation, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of a gag order imposed by Coleman, told The Associated Press that the delay was partly because of travel problems Williams experienced getting to New Jersey from his home in South Carolina.

Several sources have reported that Williams will plead guilty to an assault charge that would carry a minimum 18-month sentence because a gun was involved. Williams was acquitted of aggravated manslaughter in 2004 but convicted of covering up the shooting at his central New Jersey mansion. The jury deadlocked on a reckless manslaughter count and as a result, Williams has been awaiting a second trial for reckless manslaughter, which carries a maximum 10-year prison sentence.

Williams has been free on bail since the Feb. 14, 2002, shooting of Costas “Gus” Christofi. He paid more than $2 million in 2003 to settle a wrongful death lawsuit filed by Christofi’s family. At the 2004 trial, witnesses testified that Williams, who had been drinking, was showing off a shotgun in his bedroom when he snapped it shut and it fired, hitting Christofi in the chest and killing him. They also said Williams put the gun in the dead man’s hands and told them to lie about what happened.

Years of legal sparring followed the trial and came to a head this fall when current and former prosecutors were forced to testify about a former investigator’s use of a racial slur to describe Williams. The slur was made in a law enforcement meeting before the trial but was not divulged to defense attorneys for more than three years after, leading to defense claims that racism had tainted the investigation. But Coleman denied Williams’ lawyers request to throw the case out because of prosecutorial misconduct and racial bias.

The 41-year-old Williams played nine seasons with the Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Nets before a leg injury forced him to retire in 2000. He attempted a short-lived comeback in the minor league Continental Basketball Association in 2005.

Houston Rockets SG/SF Tracy McGrady and Head Coach Rick Adelman on Friday both denied a Yahoo! Sports report that the two had engaged in a heated argument behind closed doors on Wednesday.

McGrady said he put on his game uniform Wednesday, despite having no targeted date to return from a knee injury, because “I was excited. I put it on, like a little kid. It felt refreshing to put it on because it was in sight.” Adelman said he simply reminded McGrady that he wouldn’t play, at the earliest, until after his Nov. 23 MRI, and that “We haven’t had any arguments. He wants to know what we’re going to do.” Check back after Nov. 23 for updates. It has long been rumored that the Rockets would like to trade McGrady, but there have been not takers.

Elsewhere around the NBA:

Toronto: Toronto Raptors C Andrea Bargnani hit 9-of-14 shots and two 3-pointers on his way to 24 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks on Friday. Bargnani, who is starting to live up to his talent, is averaging nearly 18 points, six boards, two threes and more than a block per game thus far in 2009.

Miami: Heat G Mario Chalmers hit 9-of-15 shots and five 3-pointers to score a career-high 30 points in Friday’s loss to the Raptors. Chalmers also added three assists and three steals on the nigh.

Philadelphia 76ers: Lou Williams hit 12-of-16 shots and four 3-pointers on his way to a career-high 31 points to go along with two rebounds, five assists and six steals. Even with the steller performance, Williams and his team lost to Memphis at home.

Indiana: Pacers F/C Troy Murphy returned from a six-game absence with a back injury and had 12 points, 10 boards, on three pointer and two steals in 24 minutes. Barring a setback, Murphy should see steady minutes in Indiana.

Minnesota: An X-Ray revealed that Kevin Love’s broken hand is progressing, but he’s still about two weeks from practicing and three weeks from playing in a game. Love did some outside shooting Friday, and though he says he feels almost no pain in his hand, he is unable to do anything physical. If he returns Dec. 11 against the Los Angeles Lakers, that would put him right in the 6-to-8 week recovery time originally reported when he broke his hand Oct. 16

Washington: Wizards C Brendan Haywood had 14 points and 16 rebounds in Friday’s loss to the Thunder.
Haywood has play great thus far this season, averaging 11 points, 11 boards and 2.5 blocks.

Boston: Celtics F/C Rasheed Wallace hit just 4-of-16 shots and was 0-for-8 from downtown for nine points, 13 boards, three steals and a block in Friday’s loss to Orlando.

Chris Douglas-Roberts set a career high for the second straight game with 31 points, 10 rebounds, three assists, three steals and a 3-pointer on 9-of-20 shooting as the Nets lost another game Wednesday to fall to 0-12 on the year. At least there has been one bright spot to the Nets season. It will be interesting to see how Douglas-Roberts production is impacted when Devin Harris returns from a groin injury.

Elsewhere around the NBA:

Milwaukee: An MRI revealed Thursday that Milwaukee Bucks C Andrew Bogut has a left leg strain and contusion and both of the injuries are expected to cause the big man to miss the next 2-to-4 weeks. Back up C Dan Gadzuric is expected to start in Bogut’s absence, but expect Hakim Warrick, Carlos Delfino and even Kurt Thomas to see increased playing time.

Cleveland: Cavs SF Lebron James (wrist) is listed as probable for Friday’s game against the Pacers.
James hurt his wrist in Wednesday’s game, but X-rays were negative and he’s on the injury list mainly as a precaution. Hopefully James can suit it up on Friday because Shaquille O’Neal will likely miss another game.

Los Angelas: Lakers PF Pau Gasol (hamstring) will make his season debut Thursday against the Bulls. Gasol likely is not 100% and may not play a lot of minutes, but he was an integral part of the Los Angelas Lakers championship run. His return will put Lamar Odom back on the bench and is also likely to affect Andrew Bynum’s touches in the low post.

New York: News that signing Allen Iverson may force the Knicks to move another player simultaneously could make this deal take several days to get done. Iverson clears waivers at 6 p.m. Thursday, but signing him may involve moving another player – perhaps Chris Duhon – which will slow the process considerably. After indicating Wednesday that the Knicks would likely make Iverson an offer, on Thursday GM Donnie Walsh said that no decision had been reached, and one might not come soon

Oakland: Ronny Turiaf (knee) still has no time table for when he anticipates a return to the Warrior lineup.
“I really can’t tell you (when I might return),” Turiaf said, “…my stability is not there”. If he’s burning a hole in your lineup, cut him. He sounds nowhere near ready to return.

Sacramento: Paul Westphal commented on the status of Andres Nocioni saying that he is “a little more likely to play” but is still “questionable to doubtful”. This isn’t exactly a ringing endorsement by Westphal. If we were to bet money, we’d say look elsewhere Friday.