June 28, 2006

TORONTO (CP) -- Bryan Colangelo dipped into the old country to kick-start the Raptors' renaissance.

Toronto selected Andrea Bargnani first overall in the NBA draft Wednesday, making the Italian big man the first European taken at the top spot in draft history.

In a draft with no consensus No. 1 pick, Bargnani's selection ends weeks of speculation around what Colangelo would do with the pick. In the end, there was no drama, as the GM stuck with his plan to draft the young Italian he's been eyeing for weeks and build for the future.

The Raptors draft room celebrates the selection of Andrea Bargnani. (Ron Turenne/MLSE)

``He's a terrific young man, he's got a great background and he's really emerging as a player right now,'' said Colangelo.

The lanky seven-foot, 250-pound forward strode across the stage at Madison Square Garden in his new black Armani suit when NBA commissioner David Stern announced the pick. Colangelo remained with his staff in Toronto.

``I was very, very surprised,'' Bargnani said in a conference call from New York. ``I was very anxious when I was sitting at the table and when they called my name it was an incredible feeling.

``I'm very happy to go to Toronto, it's a perfect situation. It's a very nice city, very international, there's a big Italian community.''

The Raptors later selected Texas forward P.J. Tucker with their 35th pick. The six-foot-five, 225-pound forward was a second team All-American and Big 12 player of the year.

Tucker is said to be an intense, physical player, though undersized at the forward position.

The Raptors used their final pick of the draft, 56th overall, to select Bosnian forward Edin Bavcic, but promptly traded him to Philadelphia for cash considerations.

With the acquisition of Bargnani, who's known to Italian hoops fans as Il Mago _ the magician _ the league's lone non-U.S. team became even more international.

Last week, Colangelo hired former Benetton Treviso general manager Maurizio Gherardini as his assistant GM. That came on the heels of acquiring Slovenian centre Rasho Nesterovic in a trade with San Antonio for Matt Bonner and Eric Williams.

Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE/Getty Images

Bargnani, who will make $3.6 million US in his first year with the Raptors, played for Benetton Treviso in Italy the past three seasons. He recently led the team to the Italian Lega A title, earning Europe's Rising Star award for 2005-06.

``I'm aware that people have not seen me play so I have a lot to prove,'' said Bargnani, who left home at 16 to play pro ball.

Colangelo had done his homework on Bargnani in recent weeks, which included sending head coach Sam Mitchell and senior advisor Wayne Embry to Italy to check him out.

``When we looked at this pick, we wanted the best short-term and long-term solution,'' said Colangelo. ``And we felt that Andrea, producing and progressing the way he is as a young player, is clearly a player that can come in and fit into a young team with a young solid core, but he's going to develop longterm ... as (perhaps) the best player of this draft.''

Bargnani, who's drawn comparisons to Dirk Nowitzki and Pau Gasol, is quick and athletic for his size and has range beyond the three-point arc. He has fluid shooting mechanics with a good release.

But despite his pro experience _ he's played almost 150 pro games in front of some hostile European crowds _ he's expected to take a year or two to develop. His drawbacks are his lack of rebounding and defence, and his slender physique.

``I have to improve a lot in the low post because I mostly play in front of the basket,'' said Bargnani. ``That is something I have to work on with the coach.''

The Chicago Bulls selected LaMarcus Aldridge at No. 2, while the Charlotte Bobcats picked Gonzaga forward Adam Morrison at three. The Portland Trailblazers selected LSU forward Tyrus Thomas fourth, and the Atlanta Hawks took Duke forward Shelden Williams fifth.

Minnesota took Washington guard Brandon Roy at six, Boston selected Villanova guard Randy Foye with No. 7, Houston picked Connecticut forward Rudy Gay at eight, Bradley centre Patrick O'Brien went ninth to Golden State, and Mouhamed Saer Sene of Senegal went tenth to Seattle.

The night was punctuated by numerous trades. Portland acquired forward Raef LaFrentz, Dan Dickau and the rights to Foye from Boston for point guard Sebastian Telfair, centre Theo Ratliff and a 2008 second-round pick. The Trail Blazers then flipped Foye to Minnesota for Roy.

Aldridge's rights were dealt to Portland for the rights to Thomas and forward Viktor Khryapa.

Gay was traded to the Memphis Grizzlies for Shane Battier and Stromile Swift.

Colangelo tried to deal for another top-10 pick Wednesday, but the asking price was too steep _ teams wanted sophomore forward Charlie Villanueva.

Bargnani's announcement drew loud cheers _ plus the odd boo _ from the floor of the Air Canada Centre where Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment Ltd., was hosting a draft party for Raptors season ticket holders.

``I thought our organization tonight, we took a step forward,'' said Raptors swingman Morris Peterson, who took in the festivities at the ACC. ``We hopefully took the best player possible. And the moves (Colangelo's) made the last couple of weeks, bringing in Rasho, and then bringing in Andrea, two different kind of guys at the centre position. You look around the league and we need some size, we need some quickness.

``I thought it was a good pick.''

When Benetton Treviso played the Raptors two seasons ago in a pre-season matchup, Bargnani had an impressive 13 points, five rebounds and two blocks in 22 minutes as an 18-year-old. The Raptors won 86-83. Bargnani still has the autograph of Vince Carter he got after the game.

Colangelo was pleasantly surprised by the tape of that exhibition matchup, and said the growth in Bargnani's game since then ``is remarkable.''

The first Italian in the NBA, Vincenzo Esposito, also played _ albeit sparingly _ for the Raptors, in the 1995-96 season.

China's Yao Ming was the first non-American player chosen first overall in an NBA draft. The Houston Rockets selected him in 2002.