Dallas lost to the Toronto Raptors last night 95-74 in Toronto to fall to 10th in the Western Conference standings, but a half game back of 8th place Utah.

O.J. Mayo had a rough night shooting 2-8 FG, finishing with 10 points and six turnovers, but is still at 23 points and 5 rebounds on 53% shooting over his last 5, with 51% from 3. So he’s been a little hot.

PG Derek Fisher

SG O.J. Mayo

SF Dahntay Jones

PF Shawn Marion

C Chris Kaman

I can’t help but think this lineup is a little hinky. The Mavs have used it the last four games, swapping Elton Brand for Kaman. Fish starts, but Collison plays around 30 minutes a game and averages close to 3 turnovers. Vince Carter, Collison and Brandon Wright come off the bench to add scoring, but Dirk Nowitzki is more than missed by that starting lineup. Marion has put up about 13 points, 10 rebounds and a steal on 50% shooting, but this lineup is all about Mayo chucking shots up and playing fast. Can’t help but think of all the cap money they will spend and wonder when they’ll swing.

PG Luke Ridnour

SG Alexey Shved

SF Andrei Kirilenko

PF Kevin Love

C Nikola Pekovic

Pek put to rest any doubts about his ankle en route to scoring 31 points in New Orleans last night. Running out in front of the break and finishing strong around the hoop all night long finishing the night 14-18 from the field.

Shved played an efficient 35 minutes, scoring 13 points on 5-8 shooting (3 of 4 from 3) and dishing out 8 assists and only 2 turnovers, plus 2 steals. Smashingly efficient debut, by all accounts. If only Austin Rivers wouldn’t have torched him for a career night of 27 points on 9 of 14 shooting, I’d feel much better about his prospects against Mayo.

Love bruised his hand late against the Hornets last night and is questionable to play. Derrick Williams could play in his stead. Josh Howard was lost in the Hornets game, as well, with a hyperextended knee. He is day-to-day. So, the injury bug continues to bite.

However, all of this is secondary to the real main event of the evening: Ricky Rubio has been cleared to make his season debut following the rehab of the ACL and MCL tears that ended his rookie season last year. There are to be minute restrictions — he’ll come off the bench for the time being — but his arrival, with the Wolves 2 games over .500 puts the Wolves in position to expand their offensive efficiency, tighten up their defense even more just as the schedule starts to get rough.

It’s like Christmas for basketball fans. Enjoy.

Rubio’s impact could be profound. He returns to an overhauled roster, with only six faces back from the group that went 5-20 after he went down.

The team’s two Clydesdales up front – Nikola Pekovic and Love – should get more opportunities at the rim, with Rubio’s interior passes and the defensive attention he’ll draw. In particular, Love – who might have come back too soon, judging by his continued hand discomfort and miserable shooting percentages — should get more open looks as he and the point guard sync up their games again.

The pressure Rubio puts on the defense and the angles he sees could be golden for shooters such as Chase Buddinger and Roy, if only they were healthy now. Luke Ridnour will benefit in their absence. And so will the team’s Russian connection. The way Andrei Kirilenko moves without the ball and uses the baseline, he and Rubio could be good for a couple highlight set-ups per night. And teaming Alexey Shved– no longer a mere Rubio placeholder – with him in the backcourt hints at some crafty ball-sharing and scoring chances at one end, better-than-expected defense at the other.

Beautiful sentiments, all. It’s important to note that, like Robson’s piece, Asch strikes a  pose of rational expectations, first:

The schedule is a grind at the moment. The back-to-back this weekend vs. the Hornets and Mavericks is followed hard by an Orlando-Miami swing Monday and Tuesday, during which Rubio’s minutes – or even involvement in one or both – likely will be carefully managed. (A confab of team and medical personnel Saturday morning was excepted to give him the green-light to face Dallas.)

There’s some stark naked truth.

After this stretch, though, Minnesota plays just four games in a stretch of 14 days, three across the 12 days from Dec. 21 through Jan. 1. It is 9-5 when getting at least one day of rest between games.

Four games in fourteen days! That’s what I’m talking about. And it’s also important to note that Andrei Kirilenko seems to understand how good Ricky Christmas will be for him:

 “He’s one of those kind of guys who can make a difference in the game,” Kirilenko told reporters after a Wolves practice this week. “In practice you see that every attack, every possession offensively and defensively. Those guys are pretty rare. … He’s just adding some more something to the game. He can run the ball, he can really create that up-tempo and his passes are unbelievable.”

God bless us, everyone.