http://mikebarrettsblog.blogspot.com/2008/06/blazers-get-their-man-again.html

So, how do you land the 4th-best player on the board when you're holding
just the 13th pick in the draft? Smoke and mirrors. Pritchard said this
draft will be remembered as the "smoke screen draft." In other words, it was
no mistake that you never heard the Trail Blazers and Jerryd Bayless in the
same sentence in the weeks leading up to the draft. He never worked out for
the Blazers, was never discussed.


In our draft-day meeting with Pritchard, he told us one thing several times,
and we didn't really catch on. He said simply that "Indiana will select a
point guard." I replied, "why would they do that when they just traded for
T.J. Ford?" He repeated, "Indiana will select a point guard." I should have
gotten the hint, but didn't.


After that exchange, Pritchard asked us who we'd pick if we were in charge,
Westbrook or Augustin? After we'd all given our answers, he said, "what
about Jerryd Bayless?" Looking back, as the draft was unfolding, it all
began to make perfect sense. KP also said if he would have been asked for
his mock draft, Thursday morning, it would have been spot on- at least
through the first 15 picks. It would have had to have been, for him to pull
off what all indications say he did.


While everyone was hearing the Trail Blazers were going after Augustin, or
Westbrook, Pritchard and owner Paul Allen, were quietly positioning
themselves to grab Bayless. The one x-factor was Charlotte, picking in the
9th spot. We were disappointed when they selected Augustin. Inside the
Blazer war room, everything was unfolding exactly as expected.


After the Blazers picked Brandon Rush at 13, ESPN reported that Rush,
Jarrett Jack and Josh McRoberts had been traded to Indiana, for the rights
to Bayless and former ASU star Ike Diogu. Though we still await official
word of the proposed deal, it looks like KP got his man, and didn't even
need to use the 27th pick he had purchased from New Orleans.


Instead, Portland used the 27th pick to select Kansas' Darrell Arthur, who
slid way down the list. The Blazers then selected Memphis power-forward Joey
Dorsey with the 33rd, but were actually drafting for Houston in that spot.
The Blazers then packaged Arthur and Dorsey, and traded them to the Rockets
for Nicolas Batum, who was taken 25th. Again, they got exactly the guy they
had in mind when they bought the pick from the Hornets. He had a great
pre-draft workout in Portland, but was feared lost when Houston snagged him
at 25.