After making his surprise debut on the previous edition of NXT and doing some video packages for the promotion, fans eagerly tuned into Shawn Michaels' Tuesday night show: what name would Ricky Starks use in WWE?

Now granted, on paper, it's not that big of a deal, as Starks by any other name is still “Absolute,” right? Maybe yes, maybe no, but after being interrupted during his NXT contract signing, with Wes Lee coming out to start some stuff, fans finally earned their answer, with his contract reading plainly “Ricky Saints.”

… wait what?

Ricky Starks, a native of New Orleans, now has the last name of his city's sports team? What, was Ricky Pelicans taken? Or Ricky Jazz? “The Big Easy” Ricky Beignet too on the nose?

Furthermore, is that the only change WWE has planned for the former “Starkman,” or are other new wrinkles on the way? Will he lose the horn-heavy theme music? Drop the “Absolute” nickname? *Gasp* get a manager?

So far, WWE fans have about 20 minutes to base Starks on and likely enjoy what they see, but for fans who know him from AEW, HOG, Defy, or even NWO? Goodness, these changes prove that while some things have changed in NXT after the TNA partnership, WWE is still gonna WWE when they see fit.

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Booker T is excited about bringing Ricky Starks over to NXT

Discussing the arrival of Ricky Starks/Saints in NXT almost immediately after his AEW contract came to an end, one person who was very excited about the news was two-time WWE Hall of Famer Booker T. Discussing the announcement on his Hall of Fame podcast, Booker noted he really likes what he's seen so far from Starks, as he could be a really interesting force for change on WWE's third brand.

“We had a very unexpected entry that showed up in NXT. He’s showed up, and he haven’t said his name yet, so I’m not gonna step on that. I do know this certain guy, this unexpected entry into NXT is going to be signing a contract tomorrow. So guys, make sure you tune into NXT and check it out. I’m interested, I’m very very interested because I said just last week, man, this guy needs to show me something. He needs to show me something,” Booker T noted via Fightful.

“You know, when the guy not named, when he came in, he showed me something from the promo side too, you know? I was like, wow the crowd seems to dig this kid. I’m really really interested to see exactly what he brings to the NXT.”

Well, besides an all-new name, what the future holds for Starks in NXT is very much up on the air. Will he find a new tag team partner and go for Big Bill Redux? Or will he finally land singles gold, be that the North American Championship, the NXT Championship, or even Moose's X-Division Championship? Fans will have to tune in to find out.