The Toronto Star's Mark Harding reports that the Raptors received some encouraging news yesterday.  Veteran power forward Antonio Davis is returning to the lineup after a five-game hiatus due to a perplexing sore left knee.

But it may need more than Davis' return to cure all that ails the flagging squad right now.

"This is not something where I'm trying to get back in and save the team or anything like that," Davis said yesterday after coach Lenny Wilkens put his 12-11 team through a gruelling 2 1/2-hour workout at the Air Canada Centre in preparation for this afternoon's game with the Washington Jordans, er, Wizards (3 p.m., CTV, FAN 590).

In other words, Davis' absence wasn't the lone reason for the club's current three-game losing streak and his return alone won't end a slump that has seen the team lose five of its last six. But the Raps are happy to see the nine-year veteran back in uniform.