This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The newest member of the Jazz, Randy Foye, arrived in Utah on Wednesday night and was greeted at the airport by four TV stations and reporters from two newspapers.
He seemed startled by the media's interest in him.
Smiling, Foye said, "When I got drafted, it wasn't even like this."
Foye better get used to it.
Jazz players are celebrities in Utah — one of the NBA's smallest markets where fans embrace those who embrace them.
And Foye?
After talking to teams like New York, Chicago, Houston, Dallas and Atlanta throughout his free agency, he picked Utah.
"… It's not about where you live," Foye said. "It's all about basketball, and the team that has the best opportunity out of the teams I was looking at was the Utah Jazz."
Foye spent the last seven weeks "going back and forth" with Jazz general manager Kevin O'Connor and the others teams interested in his services.
In the end, Foye decided to sign a one-year, $2.5 million contract with the Jazz.
"… I felt as though I wanted to be a Utah Jazz basketball player," he said. "And when I decided to come here, it was just a no-brainer for me and my wife."
Foye, the No. 7 overall pick in the 2006 draft, has played six seasons in the NBA.
After three years in Minnesota, he played one season in Washington and two in L.A. with the Clippers.
At Minnesota, he was teammates with Jazz center Al Jefferson. In L.A., he played alongside Mo Williams, who the Jazz acquired last month.
"I'm familiar with those guys," Foye said. "I know they are a big part of this upcoming Utah Jazz team, so I wanted to be a big part of it, too."
He called Utah "a playoff team — definitely. I watched them last year. I'm a big fan of [Paul] Millsap and Big Al. Gordon Hayward, I guarded him. I think he's really good. I'm just excited. I'm excited to get out there and help these guys win."
A 6-foot-4 shooing guard, Foye averaged 11 points and 2.2 assists last season with the Clippers. He shot 38.6 percent from the 3-point line.
Asked how he best plans to help the Jazz, Foye said. "I think the biggest thing is my shooting. [But] I can also make plays … [and] bring a lot of toughness on the defensive end."
Twitter: @sluhm —
Randy Foye stats
Pts Ast Reb FG% 3% FT%
2011-12 11.0 2.2 2.1 .398 .386 .859
Career 11.6 3.2 2.4 .411 .366 .861