He has played just three games for the Jazz, but already Armen Gilliam is the talk of the town.
Salt Lake radio listeners and TV viewers are anxious to discuss just what added dimensions he offers — and there are several.
Water-cooler conversations center on whether the Jazz need to make one more move before their postseason push, or if the latest — actually, only — in-season addition of 1999-2000 is the last piece of the puzzle.
Shoot, even his coaches and new teammates are anxious to chat about how this 35-year-old vet who was out of work at Christmas is like a gift that arrived when Santa shook his bag after the end of all his appointed rounds.
Karl Malone likes the fact that, along with offseason addition Olden Polynice and returnee Greg Ostertag, the Jazz now has three big men who offer a variety of different looks in the middle. Jazz coach Jerry Sloan likes that Gilliam can both offer some bona fide backup minutes behind Malone and play alongside the Mailman against teams with smaller centers. Even Jazz rookie Quincy Lewis likes the sight of the this acquisition.
"He's gonna help us a lot," Lewis said. "He gives us another scorer, especially on that second unit when Karl goes out. You know, he's a guy that really fits into the system. He's a low-post scorer, he plays hard defense.
"You don't have to be flashy, or anything like that, in this system," Lewis added. "All you have to do is work hard and take the shots when you get them."
Thus far, Gilliam has shown a knack for that.
"This offense," Lewis said, "is made for a guy who can post up and knock down a 15-foot jump shot."
Gilliam's mid-range shooting, on display during the fourth quarter of a Jazz win over Miami last Thursday and again on Saturday when he had a double-double (13 points, 12 rebounds) in 26 minutes against the Los Angeles Clippers, is a much-needed facet that Sloan said has not been seen in these parts from a similar such big man since the days of Antoine Carr.
But that's not all.
When the Jazz play a rough-and-tumble team with a center like, say, Shaquille O'Neal, who will be in town when the Los Angeles Lakers visit the Delta Center on Monday, Gilliam offers another six fouls with which to hack and whack.
Gilliam can play with his back to the basket, something sorely missed on a club that has only one true proficient master of that task — Malone.
And when Gilliam has his 15-footer going, he offers an element previously unseen this season: A big man whose outside shot (even if it's not from behind the line) must be respected.
Pete Chilcutt, who was waived to make room for the signing of Gilliam, didn't have his shot going nearly well enough to earn many playing minutes — let alone attract any defenders. And since no one really respects the range of either Ostertag or Polynice, justifiably so, defenses are often able to pack it in and make things that much more difficult for Malone on the inside.
Now, there is one less defender who can double down on the strong side against Malone — which new NBA rules permit this season.
Moreover, Gilliam has another attribute neither Polynice nor Ostertag can claim: He is a decent free-throw shooter, especially for a big man, lessening the stress on Sloan when he sees his center going to the line late in a tight game.
Gilliam also seems to have reported in excellent physical condition — commendable considering the fact he has not been with an NBA organization since the Orlando Magic cut ties with him in mid-November.
To top it all off, the guy is quick to learn — something Sloan said calls "a major concern" when searching for free-agent help.
"I think he's come in and tried very hard to run our stuff," Sloan said, "and get an understanding of what we're trying to do."
The flip side to these piles of praise, of course, is the possibility that the new-Armen shine will wear off before Utah gets a chance to benefit from what seems like so many potential upsides.
It has been only three games, after all.
Still, the Jazz seem content to ride him while he's hot. And why not?
ARMEN TO THAT: You may have noticed that Gilliam is spelling his first name Armen, rather than Armon, which is both his given and legal name — and the name he has been known by throughout most of his lengthy NBA career.
It seems Gilliam made the switch from Armon to Armen last season, primarily "so people pronounce it right.
"I've been correcting people for so long," he said.
So, all together now: It's pronounced Armen, formerly spelled Armon, and now spelled Armen.
"Of course," Gilliam said, "everybody still says Armon anyway."
For the record, Gilliam said he signed his new contract with the Jazz "Armon."
AND FINALLY: NBA all-time assists leader John Stockton is no longer the top distributor of points . . . at his own school. Matt Santangelo broke the veteran Jazz point guard's long-standing careers record at Gonzaga University, recording his 555th assist for the Bulldogs Thursday.