Trail Blazers need to give Flynn the backup minutes at point guard

While the Blazers odds for reaching the playoffs this season looking slim (currently 3 GB of Houston for the 8th seed), the emergence of Jonny Flynn has been one of the bright spots. In his past four games (including tonight's game against the Timberwolves), Flynn has displayed the quickness that made him the #6 overall pick in the 2009 draft. Flynn was considered more of a score first point guard, but has shown improved court vision since receiving rotation minutes. In this current four game stretch, Flynn has averaged 4.8 points, 1.3 rebounds and 4.5 assists on 46.7% shooting, against just 1.3 turnovers in 18 minutes per game.
Smith has had his moments this season, including 12 points and 3 rebounds in a road win over the Bulls. He has struggled with solid on-ball pressure, as well as his decision-making, as his 1.25 to 1 assist to turnover ratio would indicate. Smith spent a good portion of his college career playing at shooting guard, and only saw significant run at point after Kyrie Irving went down to injury last season. He does have a solid outside shot (36.8% at Duke, 34.6% this season), but his lack of a quick first step or elite ball-handling limits the space necessary to consistently score, though I expect that to improve as he becomes more used to the NBA game.
Flynn isn't a lights out three-point shooter either (34.2% career), and lacks the size to defend the bigger point guards in the league, which is something Smith's frame is better suited for. Smith has also shown more awareness on the defensive end of the floor, though both have struggled some when the team goes to a zone. Flynn has also appeared reluctant to shoot the ball at times, perhaps due to his pre-draft reputation as a score-first point guard and subsequent desire to shed that label.

Where Flynn really differentiates himself from Smith is running an offense, as he's consistently pushed the tempo when in the game. His quickness and ball-handling ability allow him to effectively use the pick-and-roll, and has shown solid court vision after getting in the lane, consistently finding the open man. Flynn does tend to leave his feet too often when trying to make a play, which has resulted in some preventable turnovers. He has shown very well working the pick-and-roll, particularly when pairing with J.J. Hickson, and makes good decisions on whether to take the shot or pass.
Starter Raymond Felton has performed much better since Nate McMillan was replaced by assistant Kaleb Canales, so there will likely not be enough minutes for both Smith and Flynn to see rotation minutes, and the team should at least consider re-signing him. Both Smith and Flynn are 23 (with Smith turning 24 this summer), so there's definitely still room for them to grow as players. The Blazers will need to make a decision soon on Flynn, as the Rockets had previously declined their team option for $3.135 million (salary number via storytellerscontracts.com). While I like Smith's tenacious on-ball defense, I think the offense runs much more smoothly with Flynn at the helm, and should probably see the majority of time over the team's last 13 games in order to make a more informed decision on Flynn's potential future with the team.