Deron Williams scored a career-high 42 points in a thrilling overtime win vs. the Oklahoma City Thunder on Tuesday, including the game-winning jumper with 1.1 seconds remaining. D-Will made 14-of-23 FGs, 4-of-7 three-pointers, and 10-of-11 FTs, while handing out 10 assists vs. one turnover. The victory (which ended on a controversial non-call on Kevin Durant’s 3-pointer) moves Utah into 2nd place in the West, 1/2 game ahead of idle Phoenix, Denver and Dallas.

Elsewhere around the NBA:

Memphis: Rudy Gay did not appear bothered by his recent back pain on Tuesday, scoring a team-high 22 points on 10-of-18 shooting, with eight rebounds, two steals and four turnovers. Gay logged 40 minutes and has some serious motivation as a soon-to-be restricted FA.

Houston: Kevin Martin returned to form on Tuesday, scoring 29 points on 7-of-16 field goals, 3-of-6 three-pointers, and a perfect 12-of-12 free throws. KevMart added three rebounds, two assists and three steals in what was easily his best game since returning from a bum shoulder.

Chicago: Kirk Hinrich struggled in Tuesday’s loss to Milwaukee Bucks, scoring just nine points on 4-of-16 shooting, with zero assists in 44 minutes. Hinrich made 9-of-12 FGs in his last game, but as a career 41.4% shooter we knew things had to balance out. Every loss is costly at this point for the Bulls, who failed to gain ground on 8th-place Toronto (though injuries to Chris Bosh and Antoine Wright don’t hurt Chicago’s chances).

Milwaukee: Kurt Thomas started at center in place of injured Andrew Bogut on Tuesday, getting four points, 14 rebounds, two assists and one block in 32 minutes. Thomas is averaging under 14 minutes per game this season, and Milwaukee will fill the void at center with a platoon involving Dan Gadzuric (13 minutes), Ersan Ilyasova (32 minutes), and maybe even Primoz Brezec (DNP-CD).

Tracy McGrady is headed to the Knicks as part of a three-team deal with the Houston Rockets and Kings. This one is getting messy, but the bottom line looks like it will be T-Mac and Sergio Rodriguez in New York; Kevin Martin, Jared Jeffries, Hilton Armstrong and Jordan Hill to Houston and Carl Landry, Joey Dorsey and Larry Hughes in Sacramento. We’re adding Donte Greene and Francisco Garcia off this news, and giving T-Mac a look in deep formats. We’re not sure yet if coach Mike D’Antoni is planning on giving McGrady real minutes.

Elsewhere around the NBA:

Chicago: The Bulls have traded Tyrus Thomas to the Charlotte Bobcats in exchange for Flip Murray, Acie Law and a future first-round pick. This is huge news for Tyrus Thomas owners. The Bobcats’ frontcourt is thin and a fresh start in Charlotte could lead to 30+ minutes a game for the uber-athletic shot blocker.

New York: Beat writer Howard Beck says it’s “very likely” that Sergio Rodriguez will start for the Knicks one he gets settled. Consider adding Rodriguez in deep-to-medium sized formats. Coach Mike D’Antoni is looking for an excuse to bench Chris Duhon and Rodriguez is capable of pushing the ball and shooting better than the incumbent. With 30+ minutes in this system, Rodriguez will put up solid assist and points numbers.

Memphis: Ronnie Brewer has been traded to Memphis Grizzlies in exchange for a protected first-round draft pick in 2011. It’s a big blow to Brewer’s already declining value. He’ll go from a starter in Utah to a strict backup behind Rudy Gay and O.J. Mayo in Memphis.

Philadelphia: The Bucks have agreed to trade Jodie Meeks and Francisco Elson to the 76ers in exchange for Royal Ivey, a second-round pick and Primoz Brezec. The Sixers always liked Meeks, ever since his predraft workout with the team. He’s a true shooting guard with decent size, something they’ve been grasping at for years. Meeks won’t have any value right away, but he could end up as the starter at that spot in 2010-11.

Miami: Dwyane Wade (left calf) is almost certainly out of the Miami Heat’s next two games, but the injury is not considered serious. This is actually a positive report on Wade. He’s listed as day-to-day with a strain, which is great news considering Wade said he heard a “pop” on Wednesday night. This kind of injury can take at least two weeks to heal, but the Heat seem confident their franchise player can return well before that. He’s in a walking boot for now and is not using crutches.

Kings SG Kevin Martin (wrist) has been cleared to play by the doctor that performed his Nov. 9 surgery. Martin will practice the next couple days to see if he’s ready to go by Friday’s game at Philadelphia.

Martin has been working out for the last three weeks, so getting back into shape shouldn’t be too much of an issue. It will be interesting to see how the chemistry of the young Kings team changes with Martin entering the starting lineup. The new leader and future superstar, Evans, has come accustom to leading the team and taking the majority of the shots.

Elsewhere around the NBA:

Orlando: Orlando  Magic SG Vince Carter (shoulder) will not play against the Kings on Tuesday night. J.J. Redick draws another start while Carter’s status for Wednesday and Friday remains up in the air. “I would hope by the end of the trip,” coach Stan Van Gundy said after Tuesday’s shootaround. “There has been some improvement. He said he can raise his (left) arm up but not across his body.” Look for Carter to start against the Lakers on Monday.

Portland: Rudy Fernandez (back) has been upgraded to “questionable” for Wednesday’s game against the Bucks. This is certainly good news for the injury plagued Portland Trail blazers, who where originally expecting Fernandez back on Friday.

Chicago: Bulls coach Vinny Del Negro revealed that Taj Gibson has been playing with plantar fasciitis in his left foot and he is scheduled for a doctor’s visit Tuesday. Gibson aggravated the problem in Saturday’s win over the Wolves but still played 21 minutes on Monday.

Utah: Utah Jazz coach Jerry Sloan said after Monday’s game that he may “settle down” the team’s rotation of wing players. Sloan is eager to give more minutes to Andrei Kirilenko because, ” he’s a guy that can make plays.”

Indiana: Pacers coach Jim O’Brien says that Dahntay Jones has fallen out of the rotation because “I’m trying to put guys on the court that can space the court. We need to make threes.”
O’Brien, a coach that always has been infatuated with the 3-pointer, thinks that Jones inability to shoot clogs up the middle too much.

Milwaukee: The Bucks confirmed that Michael Redd has torn both the ACL and MCL in his left knee.
Redd’s career is in serious jeopardy. He says he fully expects to come back from this devastating injury, but we have to have our doubts. He’ll be 31 next season and this is the same knee he tore up last season.

The Sacramento Kings trailed the Bulls by as many as 35 points on Monday, but Tyreke Evans led a stunning late-game charge as Sacramento stole a road victory in Chicago. Evans started slow but finished with 23 points (8-of-19 FGs, 6-of-9 FTs), eight rebounds, three assists and two steals. He even knocked down his only 3-point attempt. The 35 point comeback was the second largest in NBA history.

Elsewhere around the NBA:

Milwaukee: Milwaukee Bucks C Andrew Bogut dominated the Pacers’ frontcourt in Monday’s road victory, scoring a career-high 31 points and grabbing a season-high 18 rebounds. He shot 14-of-19 from the field, adding three assists, one steal and three blocks.

Dallas: Mavericks F Dirk Nowitzki (elbow) is on the active list and will play on Tuesday against the Trail Blazers, according to beat writer Eddie Sefko.

Sacramento: Kevin Martin (wrist) is scheduled to have a CT scan on December 30th. If all goes well he could return in early January. “I’ll know more after that,” Martin said. “It could be (early January).” He began shooting again nearly two weeks ago, and recently began doing dribbling drills with both hands.

Detroit: Detroit Pistons F Charlie Villanueva said he will play Tuesday despite plantar fasciitis, which causes “a sharp pain every step I make.” “I can’t really move out there. I’m very limited,” said Villanueva. It seems like only a matter of time before CV needs to take time off and rest his heel, but for the immediate future he sounds like he’ll keep suiting up. On a side note, he is no longer wearing a mask to protect his recently broken nose.

Detroit: Ben Gordon missed his ninth straight game on Tuesday as he recovers from a sprained ankle.
He said he “wasn’t quite ready,” which seems to have been the case for weeks now. Keep him benched until we get a concrete report that he’s ready to suck it up and play.

San Antonio: Spurs rookie DeJuan Blair moved into the starting lineup on Monday, posting eight points and six rebounds in 16 minutes.

Indiana: Pacers center Jeff Foster is out indefinitely with back pain. Foster joined the team in Boston on Tuesday but for the immediate future Roy Hibbert and Solomon Jones will hold down the C spot for Indiana Pacers.

Oklahoma City: Injured veteran Matt Harpring (knee) has been traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder as part of Tuesday’s trade for Eric Maynor. Harpring’s career is almost certainly over, and he’s currently working as a commentator for NBATV. OKC gains an expiring contract, and Utah gets to slash his salary from their luxury tax.

Kings rookie Tyreke Evans started at shooting guard and hit 7-of-15 shots and 16-of-19 free throws on his way to a career-high 32 points in Saturday’s upset win over the Jazz. He added three boards, seven assists and a steal, despite leaving the game briefly after taking a Deron Williams elbow to the mouth. Evans, who started at SG for the injured Kevin Martin, is a good fit at the SG position due to his ability to get to the free-throw line. The future certainly looks bright for this emerging star.

Elsewhere around the NBA:

Memphis

Memphis Grizzlies PG Mike Conley’s job as the starting point guard got a little safer on Saturday Allen Iverson has left the team for personal reasons. Who didn’t see this one coming? Iverson’s career might be coming to an end.

Cleveland

Cavaliers SF LeBron James scored 33 points to go along with eight rebounds, nine assists, three steals and two 3-pointers and one negative X-ray taken on his shooting hand after the win in New York Friday. Even with a sore hand, Jaes was able to hit 12-of-17 shots against the lonely Knicks. We don’t expect the injury to cause further problems for the king.

Chicago

Bulls C Joakim Noah had a career-high 21 points to go along with 16 rebounds and four blocks as the Bulls pulled off a comeback win over the Bobcats on Saturday. Noah, who played 41 minutes, could end up being the beneficiary from Tyrus Thomas’ broken arm. Fantasy owners should have Noah in the lineup full time at this point.

Atlanta

Hawks PF Josh Smith hit 8-of-10 shots and 6-of-8 free throws on his way to 22 points, nine rebounds, seven assists and six blocks as the Atlanta Hawks crushed the Nuggets in Atlanta on Saturday. Smith, who is off to the best start of his career, seems to have grown as a play which is evident by the fact that he hasn’t attempted a single 3-pointer this season.

Los Angelas

Lakers C Andrew Bynum and PF Pau Gasol are not likely to play for the Lakers on Sunday due to their lingering injuries, although they are technically listed as game-time decisions. Phil Jackson indicated that he is hopeful that three days of rest the team will have after Sunday’s game will make both of them available for Thursday’s game against Phoenix Suns.

New Jersey

Nets Guard-Forward Chris Douglas-Roberts has tested positive for Swine Flu, but the worst has passed and he is reportedly feeling better. No word on how long he’ll be out, but we’re guessing this means he won’t play on Saturday against Boston.