Portland Trail Blazers new mascot Douglas Fur is introduced during a timeout in the second half of the team's NBA basketball game against the New York Knicks in Portland, Ore., Tuesday, March 14, 2023.
Craig Mitchelldyer / AP
Blaze the Trail Cat has a new friend to take the court with: Douglas Fur the Sasquatch.
The additional Portland Trail Blazers mascot made his debut at the Moda Center Tuesday night during a game against the New York Knicks. According to the team in a statement, Douglas had been “too shy to make himself known” before this week.
The Pacific Northwest is known for alleged sightings of Bigfoot, and Portland’s NBA team leaned into the region’s cliches for the new character.
“Keeping himself hidden, Douglas has been living amongst the vast acres of Douglas fir trees in Forest Park and navigating over 80 miles of hiking trails, while naturally blending in with other un-shaven local hikers and explorers camouflaged in true hipster outdoor attire,” the Blazers said in a press release.
In addition to his in-person debut Tuesday, Douglas is also on social media.
Douglas will be an additional mascot for the Blazers, not a replacement for Blaze, who has been the Blazers’ mascot for more than 20 years. The pair are described as best pals, with Blaze showing Douglas how basketball is fun.
Douglas joins the Blazers with just over three weeks left in the regular season. As of Wednesday, the team is 13th in the Western Conference and data-crunching news site FiveThirtyEight lists it as having a 2% chance of making the playoffs.
The Portland Trail Blazers' new mascot, Douglas Fur, walks onto the court during the second half of the team's NBA basketball game against the New York Knicks in Portland, Ore., Tuesday, March 14, 2023.
Craig Mitchelldyer / AP