Jazz in no hurry to sign guard

Having accomplished their primary goals in the free-agent market as quickly and successfully as they did this summer, the Utah Jazz have left us with only one question: Who will fill that all-important third point-guard spot?

OK, "all-important" is a slight exaggeration. The Jazz recognize that, too, especially in light of the fact they have even greater confidence in the point guards they have under contract, Carlos Arroyo and Raul Lopez.

Arroyo, in particular, elevated the Jazz's hopes with a string of strong performances in the Olympics, including a major role in Puerto Rico's upset victory over Team USA.

"Carlos Arroyo has proven he can play major minutes," said Kevin O'Connor, Jazz senior vice president of basketball operations, who recently returned from the Summer Games in Athens, Greece.

With that increased confidence in the incumbents, the Jazz are in no great hurry to sign someone, despite the recent departure of Mo Williams for Milwaukee.

O'Connor said the team has a variety of options. It can sign someone now, or — and this seems the more likely option — it can wait and see what other teams do as they get closer to the opening of training camps.

In one scenario, O'Connor said, the Jazz would invite more than one point guard to camp and "give them a chance to try out and let the best man win."

O'Connor declined to speculate on the Jazz's prospective signees, but it seems reasonable to assume that one candidate will be former Weber State star Jermaine Boyette, who played with the Jazz's summer-league team. Another possibility is veteran Travis Best, who the Jazz were rumored to have interest in last summer. A long-shot prospect is Dan Dickau, recently traded to Dallas but expected to be cut by the Mavericks.

"We really haven't decided what we're going to do," O'Connor said. "We still have money (under the salary cap), we still have maneuverability. We'll look at all the options and wait for a little bit and see what happens."

One question that will have to be answered is whether the Jazz want to sign a veteran or a youngster. In any case, the team already feels more secure with its point-guard situation than it did at the start of last season, when Arroyo was being asked to play significantly more minutes than he'd ever played in the NBA before, and Lopez was coming off a second knee surgery.

If that pair stays healthy this season, O'Connor isn't certain how important a third point guard will be.