TMJF: Raptors 94, Wolves 88

Stat Line: 32 minutes, 6-14 FG, 2-4 3FG, 3-4 FT, 17 pts, 4 rebs, 8 assts, 3 stls, 3 TOs.

Nice all-around game from Jonny Flynn, mostly against Jarrett Jack, as regular Raps starter Jose Calderon sat out this game with an injury. Given Calderon's weaknesses on defense, that may have actually hurt Flynn's production.

Flynn's eight assists included three of his most spectacular passes this season: a looping, three-quarter-court flick that hit Damien Wilkins for a layin and a foul; a soft bouncer threaded between two defenders that found Wayne Ellington for an easy two on a fast break; and a left-handed no-look from the right corner that found Wilkins alone under the basket. He also made two very pretty left-handed post feeds to Al Jefferson off the dribble that led Big Al J perfectly for easy buckets.

The dish to Ellington, along with a pass-that-led-to-an-assist to Corey Brewer, are particularly noteworthy. Toronto's color guy on the broadcast, Leo Rautins -- the Canadian national team coach -- mentioned this in connection with the pass to Brewer, and it's what got me all excited about Flynn the first time I saw him play. Flynn is one of the few point guards who leads his teammates with passes to where they should be. Rautins, whose son, Andy, is a sharpshooter for Syracuse, would know about this, having followed Flynn's two-year career with the Orange rather closely. (Leo himself is a 'cuse grad.)

Unfortunately for Flynn and the Wolves, one such pass didn't work out, and it cost them a chance to take the lead late. With the score tied at 84, Flynn ran the pick-and-pop out high on the right wing, and Flynn flipped a blind, behind-the-back bounce pass to where he thought Love would be. However, Love had, for whatever reason, faded all the way to the opposite wing. Flynn's pass bounced twice before being picked off by Hedo Turkoglu, who coasted in and gave the Raps a lead they didn't relinquish.

Because the pass was thrown behind his back, I was worried that Flynn was going to take some heat for it at such a crucial time. But this post over at Canis Hoopus, despite the title, lets Flynn off the hook, and quotes T-Wolves coach Kurt Rambis as more or less doing the same. I didn't rewind the play to see whether Love made a mistake, but when they've run that set in the previous two games, Love has been right there to catch and fire. It was just an unfortunate time for a missed connection.