PORTLAND — The Portland Trail Blazers were at it again on draft night, but the most significant deal they made Thursday was one they couldn’t talk about.

The Blazers unofficially acquired Jerryd Bayless, the 11th overall pick in the NBA draft by Indiana, and forward Ike Diogu in a draft-night trade with the Pacers.

Portland selected Brandon Rush, a 6-foot-6 guard out of Kansas, with the 13th overall pick. But as soon as his name was announced, word came that he had been dealt.

Portland sent Rush, guard Jarrett Jack and forward Josh McRoberts to Indiana in exchange for Bayless and Diogu, a four-year veteran.

Rush’s agent, Mark Bartelstein, revealed the deal Thursday night. However, neither the Blazers nor Pacers could confirm it on the record because it hadn’t been approved by the league.

The Trail Blazers also acquired the 27th overall pick, forward Darrell Arthur out of Kansas, from New Orleans. The deal was made prior to the draft.

But Arthur also was dealt before the end of the busy night for Portland general manager Kevin Pritchard, who has a reputation for maneuvering during the draft.

“I can tell you right now we’re on cloud nine,” he said. “We feel like we improved our team.”

Last year the Blazers had the No. 1 pick in the draft and selected 7-foot center Greg Oden, who had knee surgery before the season started and has yet to play for the team. Portland plans to build around a core of Oden, Brandon Roy and LaMarcus Aldridge.

As a freshman at Arizona last season, Bayless led the team in scoring with an average of 19.7 points per game. The 6-foot-3 guard appeared surprised during the draft telecast when told he was going to be a Blazer.

“They’re a great team already,” he said. “I think they’re just missing one or two parts.”

Diogu averaged 6.5 points and 3.3 rebounds per game for the Pacers last season.

Jack, who provided a spark off the bench for the Blazers, averaged 9.9 points, 3.8 assists and 2.9 rebounds. McRoberts, a rookie, had stints in the NBA’s developmental league.

Arthur was the sentimental favorite at the draft in New York when he was the last of the invited players to be selected. Teams apparently shied away from him because of undisclosed kidney problems.

NBA commissioner David Stern applauded as Arthur came to the stage to a standing ovation at Madison Square Garden.

The 6-foot-9 forward, known for his turnaround jumper, averaged 12.8 points and 6.3 rebounds for the NCAA champion Jayhawks.

Portland acquired the selection from New Orleans for cash.

In the second round, the Blazers selected Joey Dorsey, a 6-foot-9 forward out of Memphis, with the 33rd overall pick. With the 36th pick, Portland took 7-foot center Omer Asik of Turkey.

But the Blazers weren’t done dealing, and they traded Arthur and Dorsey to the Houston Rockets in exchange for the 25th overall pick, French forward Nicolas Batum. Asik was traded to Chicago for two second-round picks next year and another in 2010.

With the 55th pick, Portland selected guard Mike Taylor from the Idaho Stampede of the NBA’s developmental league. Taylor played one season for Iowa State but was dismissed from the team last summer.

Then the Blazers traded him to the Los Angeles Clippers for a second-round pick next year.

Earlier Thursday, the Blazers announced that three-point specialist James Jones had decided not to exercise his contract option with the team. That makes Jones a free agent.

The option would have made Jones a Trail Blazer through the upcoming season and paid him about $3.1 million. He can begin negotiating with other teams on Tuesday.