Blazers’ Ramos Makes Big Comeback, Too : Pro basketball: Portland rookie is recovering from head injuries suffered in December auto accident.

Late Wednesday night, after a Portland television station finished recapping the Trail Blazers’ stunning 108-107 comeback victory over the Phoenix Suns in Game 2 of the NBA Western Conference finals, it reported on a comeback of a more serious nature.

Ramon Ramos, a Trail Blazer rookie who sustained massive head injuries in a December auto accident, was shown walking through the corridor of a downtown Portland hospital. He needed support from his father, Ramon Sr., on one side, and his physical therapist on the other. But Ramos walked. They also showed him writing and speaking. His father then took Ramos on a short drive before returning him to the hospital.

Ramos’ slow, yet steady, recovery after being in a coma for nearly two months has been a continuing story of courage. And as the Trail Blazers take a 2-0 lead over the Suns into Game 3 tonight, they have not forgotten their teammate. And Ramos, apparently, has not forgotten them. His first words earlier this month were, “Mark Bryant is my amigo .”

Bryant, a Trail Blazer reserve center who is Ramos’ close friend, said: “I think about him every day. We all do. That’s why we still have his place in our locker room. He’s doing really well. We’re all proud of him.”

Ramos is doing so well that doctors are saying he might be functional enough to leave the rehabilitation center sometime this summer.

His recovery, which dragged through the winter, has become rapid in the last month. Words come slowly, but he can speak and be understood. A hospital spokesman said Ramos is able to brush his teeth, comb his hair and do other personal tasks.

Ramos even played table tennis briefly the other day, according to physical therapist Patty Kimber. The Oregonian reported that she hit the ball toward Ramos, who hit it back.

“I see progress every day,” Ramos’ father told the newspaper. “He’s speaking better and better each day, in both English and Spanish.”

Dr. Franklin Wong, in charge of Ramos’ rehabilitation, said no date has been set for his patient’s release, but it could come early in the summer.

“He has made some nice gains, but there still is a long way to go,” Wong said. “I am happy with his progress. Our goals remain the same--to get him to where he can live in as independent a situation as possible. At this point, he requires a lot of care.” John Lashway, the Trail Blazers’ public relations director, said the team would like to bring Ramos to one of their playoff games but that doctors are hesitant to place him in a large crowd.

Ramos reportedly has watched all of the Trail Blazers’ games on television, including Wednesday night’s 22-point comeback, as his own comeback continues.

Western Conference Notes

Outwardly, at least, the Suns did not appear too demoralized a day after blowing an 18-point halftime lead and losing to the Trail Blazers, 108-107, in Game 2. Naturally, they talked of recovering with home victories in Games 3 and 4 tonight and Sunday. “This team is fine,” Coach Cotton Fitzsimmons said Thursday. “It was a little bit of a shock (Wednesday). We’ve lost tough games down the stretch this season, but nothing like (Game 2). But as a coach, you make sure something like that stays in Portland. You don’t let it leave the locker room.”

Fitzsimmons, however, was concerned with the Suns’ state of mind as evidenced by the look in their eyes during Portland’s second-half comeback, suggesting that his team’s inexperience showed. “I could see in their eyes what I didn’t want to see,” Fitzsimmons said. “When Portland kept coming, I didn’t see the confidence in my players’ eyes that Cotton Fitzsimmons has. This is a very young team, even though we’ve been in the Western Conference finals two straight years now.” . . . Veteran forward Kurt Rambis said the look was like “the look you see in a lot of people’s eyes when they’re being shot at.” Rambis said the Suns’ downfall in Game 2 was trying to protect their lead rather than extend it. “We didn’t play like we were behind, which is how you have to play on the other guy’s court,” he said. “Psychological stuff is overrated, but we’ve got nobody to blame but ourselves for that loss.”