Foster At Home When Sizing Up Jazz

Greg Foster, having spent enough time with the Utah Jazz to know, was wary.

Ruben Patterson, a second-year pro, whose confidence was restored in playing a key role in Saturday’s Game 3 victory, was talking confidently.

All-Pro Gary Payton was somewhere in the middle, professing caution that the Jazz will have “new tricks up their sleeves” tonight at 6 in KeyArena, where Seattle plays Utah in Game 4 of the best-of-5 NBA playoff series.

With Seattle’s team infrastructure seemingly more secure - for now - the focus has switched to, of all things, the playoffs.

Payton this week admonished the media to “leave Vin Baker alone,” after someone suggested Baker had rediscovered himself with a 15-point, 11-rebound Game 3. “We win as one and lose as one. I’m tired of hearing about Vin this and Vin that.”

Sonics coach Paul Westphal was cautious.

“We know Game 4 will be the toughest of the series,” he said. “Utah has a history in the John Stockton and Karl Malone era of making adjustments and bouncing back.”

Foster knows about Jazz adjustments. He spent four years (1996-99) in the system. “They’ll execute better. They’ll shoot better. You’ll see a high-intensity group,” said Foster, whose nine points off the bench Saturday were instrumental in Seattle’s 89-78 victory.

Patterson, one of the Sonics’ dissidents in Games 1 and 2 after barely playing, said, “We play hard like we did Saturday, and we win. We jump on them from the start and with me coming off the bench like I did (in Game 3), we’ll be all right.”