Made a very tough decision today…. lockerz.com/s/222071318

— Deron Williams (@DeronWilliams) July 3, 2012

Williams reportedly narrowed down his decision to the Nets and Dallas Mavericks and was meeting with the two teams over the past 48 hours.

The Nets traded for All-Star shooting guard Joe Johnson yesterday in a deal that was made to team up Johnson with Williams.

Williams would not have been able to make as much money playing in Dallas, who only could have offered him a deal around 4-years, $75 million.

Jason Kidd has been rumored to sign wherever Williams chose and played golf with him some the past few days.

The Nets re-signed Gerald Wallace to a 4-year, $40 million deal earlier this week. They are expected to try and re-sign Brook Lopez and Kris Humphries now as well.

For Kris Humphries to stay with Nets, he would have to accept the veteran’s minimum salary and that isn’t happening. So consider him gone.

— Adrian Wojnarowski (@WojYahooNBA) July 3, 2012

Brooklyn was the team Dwight Howard wanted to be traded to from Orlando but the Magic have not been interested enough in any type of deal with the Nets.

There were reports earlier today that Brooklyn was willing to offer Lopez, Humphries, MarShon Brooks and three future first round picks to Orlando in exchange for Howard but the Magic were not interested in pulling the trigger on that.

Brooklyn will have most of their money tied up in just a few players especially if they re-sign Lopez and Humphries. The Nets have certainly improved their roster from last season and making sure they kept Williams was huge for them.

The Magic have been open to trade walks involving Howard who has made it clear he wants out. Howard says he wants to go to Brooklyn to play with Deron Williams but would probably be happy too in L.A. with Kobe Bryant.

A potential deal would certainly involve Andrew Bynum going to the Magic but not necessarily Pau Gasol as well. The Magic are looking for young players to rebuild their team with and Gasol doesn’t fit that mold as much.

The Lakers are still shopping Gasol as well who has gotten a lot of interest from the Minnesota Timberwolves. Minnesota has offered Derrick Williams to the Lakers for Gasol. A potential trade could also include Michael Beasley.

The Timberwolves would love to acquire Gasol to team him up with fellow countryman Ricky Rubio and All-Star Kevin Love.

It looks like the Nets will have a pretty tough time getting Howard. They haven’t totally given up hope but are taking action with other things.

Brooklyn signed Gerald Wallace to a 4-year $40 million deal today. The Nets have also looked into a potential trade to acquire Joe Johnson so pair with Deron Williams.

Williams plans to meet with the Nets and Mavericks Monday to discuss his potential future.

For Orlando, the Lakers would have the best package as of right now to get Howard by sending Bynum. Bynum was an All-Star for the first time in his career last season and is only 24 years old.

Steve Dykes-US PRESSWIRE

Thunder (1-game losing streak)
106.6 Offensive Efficiency (2nd)
99.8 Defensive Efficiency (12th)
96.1 Pace (4th)
56.8 True Shooting % (1st)
51.1 Rebound Rate (6th)

Blazers (1-game winning streak)
102.2 Offensive Efficiency (11th)
100.4 Defensive Efficiency (13th)
94.0 Pace (16th)
53.1 True Shooting % (10th)
49.5 Rebound Rate (20th)

The Thunder have been through a tough stretch lately losing most recently to the San Antonio Spurs two nights ago. Tonight they will face Portland for the first time since the trade deadline when the Blazers made it clear they weren’t in it to win it anymore this year.

The Blazers traded away Gerald Wallace and Marcus Camby at the trade deadline in return for very little.

At the beginning of the year, Portland was looking like the potential worst matchup for the Oklahoma City Thunder in a series. While they still have a decent lineup that is certainly not the case anymore.

The Blazers however beat the team with the best record in the NBA in their last game, winning against the Chicago Bulls who were without Derrick Rose for the game.

Tonight they will contend with the Thunder who will have all of their big guns. Kevin Durant will not have to deal with Wallace who was a tough cover on him in previous meetings. The lane should also be cleared some without Camby for Russell Westbrook and James Harden to take it to the rim.

The Thunder have been in cruise control lately and we’ll see what kind of Portland team shows up tonight. They might either be motivated to still play strong or a depressed type that is just mailing it in.

Normally I’d say the Thunder were a sure bet at home to get the win but they have not been playing their best basketball lately and until then it seems anyone has a fighting chance to beat them.

The game will tip at 9:30 p.m. EST on ESPN.

Chris Humphreys-US PRESSWIRE

The biggest names this trade deadline stayed put. Dwight Howard will remain with the Orlando Magic through next season. The Lakers did not deal Pau Gasol and the Nets kept Deron Williams.

A few contenders did make some noise and one team let the world know they would begin tanking. Let’s start with the 3-team deal that broke just after 3 p.m.

Nuggets, Clippers, Wizards

Denver received JaVale McGee and Ronny Turiaf, Washington received Nene, Brian Cook and a pick and Los Angeles received Nick Young. Other players and picks might be included.

The Nuggets get rid of Nene who perennially is at the top of the league in field goal percentage. The Nuggets have had trouble finding a closer in games and Nene was one guy they could go to for offense. Now they have McGee who is basically a head case but with tons of talent. Maybe George Karl can help with that.

Nene to Washington might be a good fit over there to help John Wall out. McGee and Young were the main headcases over there and it’s definitely somewhat of a plus to get rid of them.

The Clippers have needed a shooting guard all season and they get a talented one in Young without giving away much. While he may have attitude problems you have to think Chris Paul could help with that.

Portland Trailblazers

The Blazers made it clear that they have given up on the season. Not too long ago the Blazers were the most feared team by me as a potential playoff matchup with the Thunder. Today they dealt Marcus Camby and Gerald Wallace for Hasheem Thabeet, Jonny Flynn, Shawne Williams and Mehmet Okur.

They sent Camby to the Rockets for Thabeet, Flynn and a future second-round pick. They sent Wallace to New Jersey for Williams, Okur and a top-3, protected first-round pick.

The Blazers also fired head coach Nate McMillan.

Jesse Johnson-US PRESSWIRE

Los Angeles Lakers

The Lakers addressed a few needs today and parted ways with one of the all-time Lakers greats, at least according to their fans. The Lakers sent Derek Fisher and a first-round pick (via Dallas) to Houston for Jordan Hill.

Los Angeles also sent Luke Walton, Jason Kapono and a first-round pick to Cleveland for Ramon Sessions and Christian Eyenga. The Lakers have upgraded Fisher to Sessions who is one of the more underrated point guards in the NBA. Sessions however is a player that needs the ball in his hands a lot to be productive, but nonetheless is an upgrade from Fisher.

San Antonio Spurs

The Spurs will reunite with Captain Jack. San Antonio sent Richard Jefferson and a conditional first-round pick to Golden State for Stephen Jackson.

Jackson played for the Spurs from 01-03 and won the NBA title with the team in the 2002-03 season as a starter. Jackson played with Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili on those teams and was very clutch during their playoff run in 2003.

Jackson was traded from Milwaukee two days ago to Golden State in the Monta Ellis deal.

Houston Rockets

The Rockets have added Camby and Fisher and a first-round pick while giving up no one in their rotation. Houston is fresh off a victory against the Thunder and beat the team with the best-record in the West two out of four times this season.

Camby paired with Samuel Dalembert will be a tough interior presence in blocking shots and rebounding on both ends. Fisher will also bring some experience and leadership. The Rockets will be a scary matchup for anyone once the playoffs role around if they can get healthy.

Greg Smith-US PRESSWIRE

New Jersey Nets

The Nets got rid of a few players that rarely play and a first-round pick to get Wallace from Portland. Wallace is a great chemistry guy who can fit in anywhere on a basketball court. Wallace looked like the key ingredient for Portland this year and last as they looked to make a playoff run.

The Nets now have Deron Williams, Gerald Wallace and Brook Lopez. This could help them land Dwight Howard in a few ways whether it be adding Wallace into a deal to try and get Howard eventually or enticing him more so to come because Williams and Wallace would be nice players around him.

Indiana Pacers

The Pacers quietly added Leandro Barbosa from the Toronto Raptors. They sent the Raptors a second-round pick and also received point guard Anthony Carter in the deal.

Indiana has been a pleasant surprise this season and could appear in the second round of the playoffs this year. Barbosa is a nice pickup for them adding depth and scoring to their backcourt. Barbosa also has been in the top 10 in isolation scoring in the NBA the past two seasons.

As expected the Oklahoma City Thunder did not make any moves during the trade deadline. There wasn’t a lot out there for them and they didn’t have much they would be willing to part ways with. San Antonio, Houston, the Clippers and the Lakers all made moves to improve and that could spell some trouble for the Thunder.