There was bigfoot sighting at the Moda Center in Portland, Oregon on Tuesday night. During their game against the New York Knicks, the Portland Trail Blazers unveiled their new bigfoot mascot, Douglas Fur.
Douglas Fur is described by the team as bigfoot in "true hipster outdoor attire." The new mascot sports a plaid shirt and a Trail Blazers beanie to blend in with the local community.
Douglas Fur joins Blaze the Trail Cat as the team's mascots, and the Blazers join the Cleveland Cavaliers as the only NBA teams with two mascots. Trail Blazers' senior vice president of brand marketing Ryan Flaherty told The Oregonian that the franchise has been "talking about the idea for quite a few years."
This is not the first time the Trail Blazers have had a bigfoot mascot roaming around during home games. Back in the 1980s, the team had a similar mascot that make regular appearances, and Portland wanted to harken back to that era.
"He was this larger-than-life character," Flaherty said. "A big, huge, beastly character of Bigfoot origin. That conversation, that character, always intrigued us. It was authentic and offered a peek back to the ′80s, which is an era that doesn't get a lot of mention. But we had some unique things and unique teams back then."
Douglas Fur will be in attendance as the Trail Blazers try to qualify for the play-in tournament. With 13 games remaining, Portland is three games out of 10th place and the final play-in spot.
