Minnesota owner Glen Taylor told the Pioneer Press that the team doesn't currently have any trades in the works despite their dismal start to the season.

"We have a lot of draft choices; we've put ourselves in some pretty good positions," Taylor said of the team's future.

Five games were played in the NBA on Sunday night, with the Raptors hosting the defending-champion Celtics in a matinee affair.

- Boston 118, Toronto 103

Team FIC Differential: Celtics +18.4, Raptors -18.4

The Celtics (13-2) used 12-point advantages in the first and third quarters to easily defeat the Raptors (6-7) on Sunday afternoon. Ray Allen led with 21 points, Kevin Garnett had 15 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists, and Kendrick Perkins added 12 points and 8 boards in the win. Boston shot 61% from the floor and outrebounded Toronto by seven, while holding the home team to 44% shooting. Chris Bosh posted 24 points and 6 rebounds, while Jose Calderon tallied 14 points, 9 assists and 5 boards. Jermaine O?Neal, who played despite spraining his knee on Friday, left in the second quarter after missing a jumper.

Game FIC Scores

Kevin Garnett, Boston ? 17.8

Ray Allen, Boston ? 15.8

Chris Bosh, Toronto ? 14.0

Andrea Bargnani, Toronto ? 12.8

- Philadelphia 89, Golden State 81

Team FIC Differential: 76ers +2.8, Warriors -2.8

The 76ers (7-6) held off a late charge by the Warriors (5-8) thanks to a dominant performance by Elton Brand. Andre Miller had 9 points and 8 assists, Samuel Dalembert posted 8 points and 16 rebounds, and Brand led with 23 points and 12 boards. Philadelphia shot just 39%, but outrebounded Golden State by sixteen. Kelenna Azubuike starred with 16 points and 5 rebounds, Stephen Jackson tallied 12 points, 7 boards and 7 assists, and Andris Biedrins added 10 points and 8 boards in the loss.

Game FIC Scores

Elton Brand, Philadelphia ? 16.6

Samuel Dalembert, Philadelphia ? 16.5

Andris Biedrins, Golden State ? 14.2

Kelenna Azubuike, Golden State ? 14.0

- Minnesota 102, Detroit 80

Team FIC Differential: Timberwolves +42.0, Pistons -42.0

The Timberwolves (3-9) surprisingly outplayed the Pistons (8-5) over the full forty-eight minutes in their shocking victory Sunday afternoon. Randy Foye had 23 points and 14 assists, Ryan Gomes posted 20 points and 7 rebounds, and Al Jefferson contributed 19 points and 8 boards in the victory. Minnesota shot 53% and outrebounded Detroit by nine. Tayshaun Prince scored 20 points, Rasheed Wallace added 7 points and 10 rebounds, and Allen Iverson added 9 points on 3-for-11 shooting.

Game FIC Scores

Randy Foye, Minnesota ? 27.5

Ryan Gomes, Minnesota ? 19.4

Tayshaun Prince, Detroit ? 15.4

Jason Maxiell, Detroit ? 9.0

- Denver 114, Chicago 101

Team FIC Differential: Nuggets +45.2, Bulls -45.2

The Nuggets (9-5) used a 31-16 edge in the fourth quarter to down the Bulls (6-8) on Sunday night. Kenyon Martin had 26 points and 8 rebounds, Carmelo Anthony tallied 21 points, 13 boards and 8 assists, and Chauncey Billups added 21 points and 8 dimes. Denver shot 54% and attempted twenty more free throws than Chicago. Ben Gordon led with 28 points, Drew Gooden posted 21 points and 7 rebounds, and rookie Derrick Rose added 15 points and 6 assists in defeat.

Game FIC Scores

Kenyon Martin, Denver - 23.0

Carmelo Anthony, Denver - 22.8

Ben Gordon, Chicago - 18.1

Drew Gooden, Chicago - 12.3

- L.A. Lakers 118, Sacramento 108

Team FIC Differential: Lakers +13.8, Kings -13.8

The Lakers (11-1) remained hot with a win over the Kings (5-10). Kobe Bryant starred with 24 points, Andrew Bynum had 15 points and 10 rebounds, and Trevor Ariza added 11 points, 11 boards and 5 assists off the bench. Los Angeles outrebounded Sacramento by seven and attempted fifteen more free throws, allowing them to outcome the hot-shooting (53%) of the Kings. John Salmons led with 24 points, rookie Jason Thompson tallied 15 points and 7 rebounds, and Bobby Brown added 21 points and 7 assists off the bench.

Game FIC Scores

Trevor Arizona, L.A. Lakers - 18.0

Kobe Bryant, L.A. Lakers - 16.8

Jason Thompson, Sacramento - 16.1

Bobby Brown, Sacramento - 13.2

? RealGM calculates the Floor Impact Counter using the following formula: (Points + .75 Defensive Rebounds + Offensive Rebounds + Steals + Assists + Blocks - .75 Field Goal Attempts - .375 Free Throw Attempts - Turnovers - .5 Personal Fouls)

( )'s indicate a negative FIC score.

It is also used to rank players and to determine their `Reina Value.'
Click here to view the player rankings with the Reina Value for the current season

Timberwolves' GM Kevin McHale claims that he is still very happy with the seven-for-one trade that sent Kevin Garnett to the Celtics.

"I do like the deal," McHale said. "Like I said at the time, it was going to be a change, and there'll be some growing pains on the thing. But yeah, I couldn't be happier with Al and his progression and the fact that he's 23. That was the thing. You gained 10 years in age on the primary assets in the trade. So yeah, I like the deal."

Boston won an NBA title less than one year after the blockbuster trade.

Al Jefferson, who was the centerpiece of the deal in Minnesota's eyes, doesn't feel any pressure.

"I don't feel pressure at all," Jefferson said. "It's two franchises headed in opposite directions. Boston was looking to win now, which is exactly what they did. We were looking to rebuild. You can't rebuild a team overnight."

Timberwolves' owner Glen Taylor has given head coach Randy Wittman a vote of confidence despite their 2-8 start to the season.

"If I worried about the short term, and I looked at the economy and all my companies, if I based things on that, then I'd fire all my presidents because they had a bad month," Taylor said. "I've been through ups and downs. You've got to be patient. I think Randy has prepared (the players) well. We've just got to get them some confidence. They're still young."

The Timberwolves will face the Celtics on Friday night.

"I learned a long time ago that you've got to be patient with this," Taylor added. "The last thing, when these guys are trying so hard and everybody wants to win, is for me to put undue pressure on them. That's not going to make it any better. They all know I want to win, but I also know that they want to win just as bad.

"I thought we would probably have a better record. We played really good in every game for three quarters; we've just struggled in fourth quarters. We've done some really good things this year. The turnovers have been down, but when we've had them, they've been at critical times in the fourth quarter."

Last season Kevin Garnett appeared in Minnesota with the Celtics to a standing ovation, but he never took the court because of an abdominal strain.

The Timberwolves were disappointed that Garnett didn't play, but he is expected to finally take the court against his former team in Minnesota on Friday night.

"Actually, if he doesn't want to play (Friday) night, that's fine," Timberwolves coach Randy Wittman said with a smile.

"The things he did here, how can you not love him?" Al Jefferson said Thursday. "I watched him as a kid growing up in middle school and high school. The fans have every right to love him and respect him."

The Timberwolves haven't been a hot ticket so far this season, but the Target Center figures to be packed on Friday night with KG in town.

"I know Kevin did a lot of great things for this city, but I'm looking at it as just going out there and just trying to beat the Boston Celtics," guard Randy Foye said. "I hope the crowd gives him a standing ovation and everything.

"But other than that, when the ball is tipped up, it's now the Timberwolves versus the Celtics. He's got that green jersey on and we've got that white jersey on so everybody in that building should be cheering for us, not for him."

When the Sixers needed just a little more cap space to sign Elton Brand, they traded Rodney Carney and Calvin Booth to the Minnesota Timberwolves, essentially for a second-round draft choice. The club even agreed to continue to pay Booth's salary and about two-thirds of Carney's salary.

"It was kind of weird," Carney said. "I was sitting at home when [the Sixers] called and said I had been traded. I asked who I got traded for and they said they couldn't tell me. The way I look at it is, I got traded for them to get Brand. I got traded for money.

"It's still a business. I had to pick up and move. I couldn't do much about it. They had to make some moves in order to get a better team, and they did that. Hopefully, it's a good opportunity for me, but it's still a learning experience."

Kevin Love returned home to Oregon recently when the Timberwolves faced the Blazers in Portland, and had to deal with some harsh treatment.

"I got a mix of boos here and there," Love wrote in his NBA.com blog. "I got a few people on my side out there, but I felt like as far as Mike Dunleavy and Damon Stoudamire, who both played high school ball in Oregon, made it to the NBA, I can understand that at the University of Oregon that they would be bitter toward me that I went to a rival school, UCLA."

Love went 0-for-7 from the field against the Blazers.

"They were very bitter about it last year, and my dad said a few things about the University of Oregon because he kind of wished I had gone there. But I ended up going to UCLA and had a good game against Oregon. Made it to the NBA as a top five pick and I thought people would let it all go and appreciate what I did."

Timberwolves' coach Randy Wittman could be on the hot seat in the wake of the team's 1-6 start to the season.

Even if Wittman feels the pressure, he still feels as though his team is close to turning the corner.

"No, all you can do is prepare each day, that's all you can do," Wittman said. "I'm not going to worry about that. I've been in this business 25 years. I know what you have to do to be successful and that's what I'm trying to do."

Minnesota has lost two games in overtime and has blown a few sizable leads in their six losses.

"I'm not down. We shouldn't be down. We should be mad at ourselves. We're not a 1-6 team, but that's the reality. We're not that far from being 4-3," Wittman added. "This team will be better than a 20-win team. ... I really think this team is not that far from turning things in a positive direction."

Kevin Love and Sebastian Telfair gave the Wolves a huge boost off the bench in their recent double-overtime loss to the Spurs, and Randy Wittman is reportedly considering moving them into the starting lineup.

"I've got to look at it," said Wittman. "It's early. I don't want to look at that, but I'm seriously looking at different things."

It took two overtimes and 55 points from Tony Parker, but the San Antonio Spurs are finally on the board, winning their first game after losing their first three.

According to a report published by the Associated Press, Parker's 20 foot jumper at the end of overtime forced a second extended period, helping the Spurs eventually get on top of Minnesota to win 129-125.

Parker was 22-of-36 from the field and added 10 assists and seven rebounds.