SONICS FIND THEMSELVES IN A ... NO-VIN SITUATION; BAKER STRUGGLING IN FIRST POSTSEASON.

Byline: Jon Wilner Daily News Staff Writer

The Sonics were right. Vin Baker isn't Shawn Kemp. He doesn't have Kemp's ego, he doesn't have Kemp's scowl, and, presumably, he does not have Kemp's child support.

Oh, one more thing. Vin Baker does not have Shawn Kemp's game, at least not his postseason game, as Seattle has discovered during its second-round stumble.

While the Forum faithful spent the weekend wondering if the Lakers are better without Kobe Bryant, the Sonics had their own haunting hypothetical to ponder: Are they worse without Kemp, who was traded to Cleveland last summer in a three-way deal with Milwaukee that sent Baker to Seattle?

``They definitely miss Shawn now,'' Lakers guard Nick Van Exel said. ``With Vin, this is his first (playoffs) and I'm sure he didn't know what to expect. He's getting a good taste of it. Vin is Vin, but Kemp definitely fits in with them (better) now.''

That was apparent Sunday afternoon in Game 4. Baker scored two points in the final three quarters and, perhaps more telling, had no presence. He forced no double-teams. He created few scoring opportunities for his teammates. For 36 minutes, he was useless.

``I played (poorly),'' he said. ``I can't put a finger on it, but it's very frustrating. It's a bad time for this to happen.''

This is Baker's first playoff experience since high school, and it shows. Tentative and inconsistent, his scoring average has dropped from 19.2 in the regular season to 14.4 in the playoffs. In four games against the Lakers, he's averaging 14 points and shooting 44.8 percent, down from 54 percent in the regular season. And to the Sonics' chagrin, he saved his worst for last, scoring two points in the fourth quarters of Games 3 and 4.

Meanwhile, Kemp, who has fathered seven kids with six women, according to Sports Illustrated, averaged 26 points and 10.3 rebounds for the Cavaliers in their first-round series against Chicago.

``It's frustrating to play well all year and then pull this act in the playoffs,'' Baker said. ``It's just inexcusable.''

In his humility and affability, in his willingness to ride shotgun on Gary Payton's team and his acceptance of Jim McIlvaine's huge contract, Baker is the anti-Kemp in almost every sense. The Sonics thought they had exchanged equal talents and unequal personalities, and the regular season seemed to confirm their suspicion. Baker was an All Star and a locker room joy as Seattle won 61 games and the Pacific Division title.

But always, the question lingered: How would Baker react to playoff pressure? To playoff defense? He admitted to being cottonmouthed before the first-round series against Minnesota, and the Timberwolves quietly rejoiced about facing a postseason rookie instead of the veteran Kemp.

Baker has struggled not with the Wolves and Lakers so much as with himself. A missed shot or bad pass has little meaning in the regular season, but in the playoffs each possession is critical, each error magnified.

With no playoff exposure, Baker had no immunity to the impact of mistakes on his system. They've ravaged him like the flu ravaged Bryant.

``I'm struggling offensively because I'm worried about being detrimental to the team,'' Baker said. ``I feel horrible when I make a mistake, and then I get passive.''

Passive is not the way to play Shaquille O'Neal, who has outscored Baker 122-56. The Sonics do not expect Baker, a natural power forward at 250 pounds, to contain the 315-pound O'Neal by himself. But they do expect Baker to score - or, at least, to create scoring chances for his teammates. Yet he has done neither, and therein lies the crucial difference between Baker and Kemp.

``The playoffs are an experience, a growing experience,'' Sonics coach George Karl said. ``At times, Vin is witnessing and thinking, and not playing.''

Seattle's offense is designed to draw double-teams in the low post, thus leaving three defenders to cover four gunners stationed beyond the 3-point line. Kemp's quickness and slashing style were too much for O'Neal and forced the Lakers to drop a defender from the perimeter, as Seattle hoped.

But Baker has settled for turnarounds and fadeaways that the massive O'Neal can handle in one-on-one situations - leaving four Lakers to cover four Sonics and choking the 3-point life out of the gang in green.

``Vin has tried to shoot over Shaq and it's tough,'' Van Exel said. ``With Kemp, a lot of times we had to double him, and that left guys open. We don't have to leave the perimeter open with Baker. That's the biggest difference between Kemp and Vin.''

CAPTION(S):

3 Photos

Photo: (1--2--Color) The play of the Sonics' Vin Baker (42) in the playoffs prompted the Lakers' Nick Van Exel to say: ``They definitely miss Shawn (Kemp) right now.''

David Sprague and David R. Crane/Daily News

(3) SONIC SWOON

Statistics for Vin Baker (42) through four playoff games against the Lakers: FG 26-58 (44.8%) - FT 4-11 (36.4%) - Pts.Gm 14.0 - TO/Gm 2.5

David R. Crane/Daily News