As the Seattle SuperSonics went down to the Utah Jazz in the opening round, most people around the country weren't surprised. Those on the inside knew the Sonics had the ability to beat the Jazz, particularly after splitting the regular season series.

But once the Sonics fell behind 0-2 and coach Paul Westphal went to his third starting lineup of the series, they rallied to win the next two games before falling by three in the conclusive Game 5.

Payton, the Sonics' All-NBA point guard, has made it no secret he doesn't care for the way Westphal has changed the attitude of the team since he replaced George Karl as coach prior to last season. Under Karl, they had a winning percentage of better than .725 and finished first in the Pacific Division four of his last five seasons.

In Westphal's first season, they were out of the playoffs and finished fifth. This year, they climbed to the fourth spot, just ahead of Sacramento in the final week of the season and lost to the Jazz in the first round.

"I'm gonna talk to my agent and we'll see what happens," Payton said after the series.

Payton, soon to be 32, clearly isn't happy with the direction of the team, and his agent, Aaron Goodwin, isn't about to hide that fact. Besides, Goodwin also represents Vin Baker, who has bottomed out since Karl left after being an All-Star four consecutive seasons.

"Gary and Vin are two separate situations, but they're both unhappy with what has happened," Goodwin told SportsLine.com Sunday. "Vin was an All-Star and now he doesn't feel the players and management are behind him. He's not the kind of guy who can succeed in that kind of environment.

"With Gary, it's different. He's carrying this team. He keeps himself in great shape and believes he can play 5 or 6 more years, but he's not going to do it in Seattle if it means not having the kind of team that is capable of gaining a homecourt advantage and challenging for a title. That's the only reason he will continue to play ... is to win a championship."

Baker will be difficult to trade because he has a new contract and the base-year compensation in return for his $87 million contract makes it nearly prohibitive to make a deal unless a third team is involved or the deal is with teams under the cap, like the Bulls, Clippers or Magic.

In the case of Payton, most people don't believe he would actually try and force a trade. His family is happy in Seattle and he's also comfortable with the control he has in a smaller market and a team in which management is perceived as willing to do anything and everything to pacify him.

Will he attempt to force Westphal out?

"I'm not going to comment on that," Goodwin said. "Only Gary can say if he's OK with Paul or not."

Would he really leave?

"He's not going to stick around to maybe be in the playoffs or maybe not," Goodwin said. "He doesn't want to be on a team that barely makes the playoffs, goes into the first round and is out. This team was in the thick of things his whole career until (Karl left). Obviously, it bothers him. He wants to win more than anything else, and if he can't do it here, then he'll have to go somewhere where he can."

The sounds of silence

Black arm bands, black ribbons and a moment of silence honored Bill Musselman, the Blazers assistant coach who died from complications of bone marrow cancer Friday.

Musselman, 59, coached basketball for 29 years, including stints as head coach with the Minnesota Timberwolves and Cleveland Cavaliers in the NBA, the University of Minnesota and South Alabama in college. He particularly touched young Blazers point guard Damon Stoudamire, who has been writing a column during the playoffs with Oregonian sports writer and SportsLine.com contributor Kerry Eggers.

He particularly was touched by Musselman during the first round of the playoffs. Already hospitalized at the Mayo Clinic, Musselman called Stoudamire in his hotel room on May 1, the day after he was 0-for-8 from the field with just two free throws before fouling out.

"We talked for about a half-hour, and he told me, 'Keep your head up, you are a hell of a player,'" Stoudamire wrote. "'Go in there and show everybody what you are all about.' We got teary-eyed, and I'm choking up thinking about it now."

That was the way most who got to know Musselman well really felt about the guy. He was tougher than most, and consequently fought for his life until the end.

"Coach Muss was such an important piece of the team," said Blazers forward Scottie Pippen, who now is 13 points shy of catching Wilt Chamberlain for 10th place in all-time playoff scoring. "He had a special relationship with each one of us on this team. We all feel for his wife and his family and what they are going through right now."

As if the Blazers don't have enough motivation to challenge the Lakers in the West, they now have the spirit of Bill Musselman too.

Shots from the perimeter

• Jazz coach Jerry Sloan now is sixth in NBA history with 73 playoff victories, two behind Chuck Daly and eight behind K.C. Jones. He is fourth all-time having coached 140 games.
• The Jazz are fourth all-time in consecutive seasons in the playoffs (17), behind the Blazers (1983-present), Celtics (1951-69) and Sixers (1950-71).
• The Jazz are 1-12 all-time in playoff games played in Portland.
• The Blazers are 7-0 in best-of-7 series in which they've won the first game and 16-1 in series overall when they've won Game 1.
• Another team just picking up the pieces from a late run in the playoffs like the Sonics was George Karl's Milwaukee Bucks, who came within one field goal of knocking out the top-seeded Indiana Pacers. With young Tim Thomas blossoming as a small forward, local sentiment has them dealing high-scoring Glenn Robinson in a package to help them get bigger up front.
• Toss in the name of Jerry Stackhouse as an available name, as the Pistons attempt to rebuild in strong enough fashion to keep Grant Hill from leaving as a free agent. Reports say Joe Dumars has gained total control of the team's personnel.
• Former teammate John Paxson has moved up the list of candidates to be the first hire for Michael Jordan as coach of the Wizards.