Lucky No. 13 for Raps. Fate works in their favour as Davis drops in their lap at NBA draft

Ed Davis, out of North Carolina, talks with reporters after donning his Raptors cap at the NBA draft Thursday night. (Sun wire services photo).

Lucky No. 13 for Raps. Fate works in their favour as Davis drops in their lap at NBA draft. A glimpse of life without Chris Bosh was provided Thursday night, a night when the Raptors’ off-season make-over was unveiled.

Ed Davis isn’t going to come to town and dominant the post, post numbers or retrieve every miss, but he’s a presence and a piece to a rebuilding process that got off to an impressive beginning.

Davis slid in the draft, a drop that meant the Raptors couldn’t afford to bypass the kid when their slot at

No. 13 was called by David Stern in New York last night.

Davis’ favourite player is Bosh, whom the North Carolinian referred to in the past tense in reference to CB4’s link with Toronto.

Earlier in the day, Bosh appeared on ESPN radio and basically told a national audience he’ll wait to see what LeBron James does in free agency before deciding his path, one that is destined not to be in Toronto.

There’s talk of Golden State, which earlier this week shed Corey Maggette’s contract, dangling Andris Biedrins, a true centre who has four years left and $36 million US.

A player such as Biedrins, who rebounds and defends but who has no offensive game to speak of, would be an ideal complement for Andrea Bargnani.

At this point, it’s pure speculation, but the fact that Biedrins is available, it’s not a stretch to believe the Raps have an interest. And they should.

At the same time, they should be very pleased at the selection of Davis, whose father Terry played 10 years in the NBA, distinguishing himself with his work ethic, selflessness and willingness to sacrifice.

The next-generation Davis is athletic, can run the floor and has a body that is perfect for the NBA — long, lean and with plenty of room to get bigger. At 6-foot-10, Davis can play at power forward and depending on matchups can slide over to centre.

Davis is listed at 225 pounds and like Bosh, his strong hand is his left hand.

This kid is no stiff, a prize that dropped because Davis broke his wrist last season for an underachieving Tar Heel team, forcing him to miss Carolina’s last 13 games.

He’s no Vince Carter, the most famous Tar Heel alum to play here, but Davis addresses a need and immediately becomes a building block to a franchise that’s in transition.

He’s a face and sign of hope because he has game, brings the right attitude and he’ll bang. With so many questions surrounding the Raptors as next week’s free agency looms, there’s no question Davis will help. All the speculation surrounding Davis pegged him as a top-10 pick, certainly out of reach of Toronto, which didn’t even work him out individually.

As fate would have it, everything worked out for the Raptors, who nonetheless have plenty of work ahead.

For now, Davis must be viewed as a piece, a solid draft choice whose future has no boundary.

The Raptors are short on bigs, the only players under contract being Bargnani and Reggie Evans, who missed most of his first season in Toronto with by a foot injury.

The Raptors would like to re-sign Amir Johnson, but there’s no guarantee they’ll be able to keep him.

The Bosh scenario is so open-ended that anything is possible, but it should become obvious to everyone now that his time in T.O. is over.

Earlier Thursday, talk was of the team discussing a deal with Portland that would have brought Rudy Fernandez to town.

According to the rumours, talks broke down, but it showed how open the Raptors are in doing business with any suitor that would improve Toronto’s roster.

Davis isn’t going anywhere, except to the weight room to add bulk to a body that will one day look a lot like Antonio Davis, a former Raptor who evolved into an all-star as an undersized centre.

Thursday was a start for the Raptors and drafting Davis was a very nice beginning, a time that will soon usher the beginning of the end for some in Toronto. ( .torontosun.com )