Carlos Arroyo was born on the 30th of July 1979 in Fajardo, Puerto Rico. He is 6-2 and he weighs 91.6 kilo. He went to college at Florida International and in his last year he averaged 21 point per game and 4 assists per game in a squad that lost more matches than it won. Arroyo wasn't originally drafted but was picked up by the Toronto Raptors.
It was highly unlikely the young point guard would be picked up by the Raptors since the Raptors didn't have a roster spot available. But with a convincing pre-season performance he forced the Raptors to trade Skinner to make room for him. "Carlos has played hard and he has earned the trust of the coaching staff and his teammates," the Raptors' general manager Grunwald said. "Carlos earned his spot on the team." Coach Lenny Wilkens was also impressed by the young point guard. "I think (Arroyo) is playing well," Raptors coach Lenny Wilkens said. "I like him." Arroyo convinced them by making some great appearances on the court and the first pre-season game was already a good one and he impressed a lot of people. "He's playing awfully well, the important thing for him is to continue to improve," said assistant coach Stan Albeck. And it seemed he did just that in the pre-season and one of the main reasons was how he played the game. He played hard and hustled his way into the roster. "I don't know if it helps a lot, but I know I'm going to keep working hard and doing the things I have to do to try to make the squad," Arroyo said. Because the only thing he wanted to do, was to play in the NBA.
And he achieved that goal indeed as the Raptors signed the young point guard. "I just wanted to cry," Arroyo said. "I feel I've worked so hard since I was five years old to get to this point. This is a dream come true. It's amazing, but it's a feeling I can't explain." Of course, Wilkens had a say in this and the former point guard gave him nothing but praise. "He's a legitimate point guard," Wilkens said. "He understands that position well." Even his teammates were relieved that they kept the young Puerto Rican, especially Antonio Davis who has always hoped the Raptors would sign him. "I hope we keep him around," Davis said of Arroyo. "I'm biased because I like the way he works hard. Any guy who works hard is on my good side. From Day 1, he stepped in, has been tough, smart and done everything he could."And he wanted to keep playing in the NBA, but that isn't an easy task. But he was determined to make it. "My mentality is to always work hard," Arroyo said. "You won't see me relaxing because they got me a spot on the team. I now have more pressure to show them that I am consistent, that I can do the job."
Unfortunately he didn't prove that in the season and after playing in 17 games for the Raptors, in which he averaged 1.8 ppg and 1.2 apg while playing 5.6 mpg, he was waived. "Maybe (Arroyo) needs a little more experience," Raptors general manager Glen Grunwald said. "He's a good player, but this gives us more flexibility to think about some other things." Wilkens said the same. "We like (Arroyo), but we feel he needs to get a lot more experience," Wilkens said. "We'll watch and see what his progress is and there's the possibility that someone else could pick him up. We understand that. But at this point in time, we need to move on."
Arroyo was picked up by Denver and didn't do that bad. As a matter of fact, he averaged 4.1 ppg and 2.5 apg while shooting 44% from the field. He finished 14th in the league in the category assists per 48 minutes. Someone who saw him a lot there was Dave Fredman. A radio station in Salt Lake City called him and asked him about Arroyo. Fredman told them that Arroyo was a very good half-court player, which is the style the Jazz play. And that's why, Fredman continued, he is probably going to blossom in Utah because he hasn't played with a team that uses the half-court game yet. But his play in Denver probably wasn't really the thing that convinced the Jazz to sign him. Something that probably helped a lot was his performance in the World Championships, especially his performance against the team of the United States. His country lost, but he played a very good game against the point guards Baron Davis, Andre Miller and Jay Williams. He scored 21 points and dished out 9 assists while only committing two turnovers. In the whole tournament he averaged 11.6 ppg and 6.4 apg. And that may have convinced the Jazz.
And now Arroyo is a Jazz man. He accepted a 1-year deal which approximately is worth 475.000 dollar. And while some players don't even want to think about going to Utah, Arroyo is thrilled to go there. "I'm so happy to be here," the 23-year-old Puerto Rican gushed. "This is a great opportunity for me. I couldn't be happier, and my family couldn't be happier." He also talked to teammate at the World Championships and former Jazz man Jose Ortiz. "He has a lot of good things to say about the city," Arroyo said. "And he's excited for me to come here." And then there of course is the opportunity to learn from one of the best point guards ever, John Stockton. The young Arroyo likes to learn from veterans. When he signed a contract with Toronto one of the things he was most excited about was working with veteran Chris Childs. Childs took him out for dinner when he was signed and Arroyo appreciated that and tried to learn as much as he could from Childs. "He's taking me under his wings," Arroyo said of Childs. "I talk to him a lot. I trust him and he has given me a lot of confidence. I'm a rookie and he's a veteran. I'm glad that I have teammates like that around me." Imagine how excited he must be now he gets to work with John Stockton. "I'm going to learn from the best," he said. "I hope he teaches me the way. . . . Playing behind the master, and me playing the same position, is going to help me a lot." Kevin O'Connor, one of the men responsible for brining him in, has a lot of confidence in Arroyo. "If you look at him from last summer to this summer, he's improved a lot," said Kevin O'Connor, Jazz vice president for basketball operations. "We like guys who like to play, and who can get better. He's proven he's a point guard, rather than a scorer or anything else. He's going to look pass first and shoot second. He handles the ball very well, and he has a knack for finding open players on the court."
Those comments by O'Connor don't necessarily mean that he will automatically get a lot of minutes because even with Lopez down for (a large part of) the season, he will still have to battle for his minutes. And he knows that. "I still have to go to camp and show the coach I can play," he said.
With the signing of Carlos Arroyo the Jazz point guard problems aren't over. One problem is that Arroyo isn't the ideal back-up. Of course that problem arose because of the injury of Raul Lopez but, and lets take the bull by the horns here, Arroyo is probably not capable of playing at a high level constantly. I don't doubt that he has talent and I'm sure we will see him grow behind Stockton and in the Jazz system and I'm sure he will have some good games, but I doubt he will be capable of being a good back-up for Stockton during the whole season. He will have ups and downs. He will play very well 6 games in a row just to see himself being outplayed the next 4 games. I think that he will be valuable for the Jazz in the long run, if that are the Jazz intentions, because a pass first, shoot second kind of point guard with skills will be rewarded in Sloans system. But I highly doubt he will be capable of playing at a high level consistently. And he, according to various reports, still needs to learn a lot (who doesn't at his age?) but mainly on the defensive end. If a guard is quicker than him, he will have a lot of problems with that guard, although he is pretty quick himself. And keep in mind that backing up Stockton isn't an easy task. Stockton exposes every weak spot of his back-up. And that is good if you want to know what the flaws in your game are, but the fans and the management also see all your weak spots. If the Jazz with Stockton in the game outscore the opponent by 15 and with you in the game the opponent outscores the Jazz by 10, then many people will be sitting there thinking you are a bad player and many people will be irritated by your play because you can't lead the team, according to them. And so you will get in a mind game no one wants you to get into. And I'm afraid it is probably as difficult to win that mind game as to comprehend this paragraph. So to summaries it a bit: I don't think Arroyo will be capable of playing at a high level consistently, although I do think he will fit in the system and I do think he will learn a lot and that we will see him grow. I think he is a good signing but he definitely needs help from a good third point guard so that he gets more time to learn and doesn't get thrown into the lion's den immediately.
So his signing means we will get a third point guard. The Jazz management still has to decide who that is going to be. With the young Arroyo and Lopez, the most likely option would be a veteran point guard. The Jazz, who can't offer anything more than the minimum salary to a player, are still looking at some veterans. Some of the veterans who are still available are Tim Hardaway, Damon Jones and our very own John Crotty. They are also thinking about inviting a few guys to camp and sign one of them. That would most likely mean it is a young player who currently plays overseas or someone who wasn't drafted.
I personally would chose for John Crotty, despite his knee injuries. Crotty is a veteran and knows the system. We know he is capable of being a good back-up to John Stockton and he will help out Arroyo in two ways. One is the way mentioned in the previous paragraph. With Crotty behind him Arroyo can play with less pressure. If he was alone or with a not-so-competent third point guard he has to perform when Stockton is on the bench, and Stockton needs all the rest he can get. With Crotty behind him he can play without that pressure knowing that he just has to go out there and play and if it doesn't go that well, and he will surely have games it won't go that well, then you have Crotty sitting there and Crotty is able to play that position. So he can just go out there and play his game. This gives him more time to learn and puts him in a good position to learn because if you have lots of pressure on you, then you won't learn as quickly as you would without the pressure. At least, that is my experience.
The second way is that he can learn from Crotty as well. Crotty has been the back-up of a lot of good point guards and knows a few tricks of his own. I am confident that Arroyo will learn more from Stockton and Crotty than from Stockton alone.
Crotty will not only help Arroyo, but also the Jazz. Crotty proved last season he can play the point guard position and that is what the Jazz need. They don't need a Nick van Exel as their back-up. Just a point guard who can give the pass. Crotty and Arroyo both can do that. But Arroyo still has a lot to learn, mainly on the defensive end, and also has to learn how to be consistent. And if someone has so much to learn, including a new system, it is nice to have someone there who doesn't have to learn all that and can play the position as well as the Jazz want. And Crotty is the right person even though he, in order to do that, has to stay healthy which might be the biggest obstacle Crotty needs to overcome as he has struggled with his knee throughout his career.
If the Jazz sign Crotty then I think signing Arroyo was a good choice. Arroyo is a pass first, shoot second point guard who can play the half-court game very well. Having Crotty behind him gives Arroyo the time to learn everything so that at the end of the season Arroyo can be a back-up who can play at a high level, at least high enough for a bench player, on a constant bases. I don't think Arroyo will play at a high level at a constant bases right from the start but if he gets enough time to learn than I think that at the end of the season he will be playing at a high enough level consistently, and that is what the Jazz are looking for and I think that this talented, young Puerto Rican can do it, if given the time.