Ed Davis Unlikely to be Back with Raptors Next Season

[Built Ford Tough]

Ed Davis was never supposed to be a Raptor.

 

Back in 2010 the North Carolina big man was slated to go in the top-ten of the NBA Draft, to a team like Detroit or Utah, and well before the Raptors selected at thirteen. The Raptors didn't need Ed Davis. Despite Chris Bosh's imminent departure from the club, they already had a future starter lined up in Andrea Bargnani and were high on his backup, Amir Johnson, who they re-signed that summer. In 2010 the Raptors were looking for a wing. They had Fresno State's Paul George atop their draft board, and were scouring the league for another first-round pick to grab Texas guard Avery Bradley with. Simply put, two years ago the Raptors weren't looking to come out of the draft with a big and Davis has been an odd fit in Toronto ever since.

 

One of the biggest factors hurting Davis right now is something he can't even control: his size. To say he is slender is an understatement, and in a league of herculean post players he's spent two years getting tossed around like a rag doll. He can't hold his position down low on offence, struggles to deny position on defence and gets absolutely abused when he tries to take the ball to the rim. At 22 his body simply hasn't developed to a point where it can put on the raw muscle he needs to stand a chance, which has made finding matchups that favour him and to help along his development a difficult task all year long.

 

....

 

Does any of this mean that Davis is a bad prospect? No, absolutely not. Not even close. He has a natural nose for rebounds, and as he puts on muscle that could make him a solid contributor to a team in that area. Likewise his passing instincts are underrated, and in the right system that could help open up options for how he contributes offensively. However, with Bargnani and Johnson in tow, Valanciunas on his way and Aaron Gray a no-brainer to re-sign, the minutes to develop Davis just won't be there in Toronto next season, which is probably why he won't be in Toronto when next season begins.

 

Of course, Davis was never supposed to be in Toronto in the first place. He was almost like an inherited pick, a guy Colangelo took because he thought he should, not because Davis is who he wanted. The roster was never really designed to force development out of Davis like it was for Bargnani and DeRozan, and probably will be next year for Valanciunas. He never felt like a guy the organization was excited to stand behind, just a guy they were happy to have. Davis still has a lot of growing to do as a player and could still turn out to be a fine professional, it's just unlikely that any of that happens with him playing in Toronto.

 

http://www.tsn.ca/nba/story/?id=392129

 

I don't believe Chisholm really has many inside sources and I don't believe just because he says something it will happen. He doesn't exactly have a sparkling track record (he said Barbosa would not get traded and would be re-signed among other things).

 

However, I definitely believe this story. The minute the season started and we saw how little of an opportunity Davis got and it was clear that he was the odd man out when Valanciunas comes over next season. I like Davis but it is clear he has no future with this team based on how he has been handled.

 

It is basically him or Amir. One of them has to go and Davis is the logical choice given his playing style (strictly a 4 while Amir can handle some time at the 5) and his value.

 

I can't really blame anybody for it either. He has a future in this league but he just doesn't fit with this team. I can easily see him being dealt around the draft, especially with Colangelo looking to make a move around that time period, which was basically the entire reason behind the Barbosa trade (they have $12M to play with during the draft and you know Colangelo intends to use it someway).

[DunkinDerozan]

I figured he'd be leaving too. Like you and the author of the article said, its either him or Amir. And me personally, would rather keep Amir. He is much more consistent, bigger, and has some more experience. Plus Davis' value is higher, so assuming we trade him, we might get a decent return.