Richard Farley of FourFourTwo looked at the career of Real Salt Lake‘s Kyle Beckerman and discussed how he should go down as an all-time great in MLS.

After talking about Beckerman’s humility, Farley wrote, “Beckerman has helped guide RSL from competitive obscurity to a model of franchise growth. He’s won an MLS Cup, another Western Conference title, is a multi-time All-Star and is the captain of one of the most iconic squad cores in league history.”

Farley then mentions comparing Beckerman to Derek Jeter, Tony Gwynn and Kevin Garnett, before diving into what Beckerman has done in MLS, saying, “The legacies of those athletes, both Hall of Fame-caliber in their sports, float in rarified air, but perhaps Beckerman’s should, too. His position doesn’t lend itself to lofty attacking numbers, but in his defensive midfield role, he has accumulated more appearances (412), starts (403) and minutes (34,117) than any field player in Major League Soccer history.”

After talking about Beckerman’s role at the international level, Farley continues, “Kyle Beckerman is Hall of Fame material. He’s not only a legend in Salt Lake; he’s a legend of the entire league.”

The Utah Jazz got good while no one was watching

Chris Herring of FiveThirtyEight looked at how the Utah Jazz turned into a contender under the NBA radar.

After looking at how the Philadelphia 76ers and the Houston Rockets made improvements, Herring turned his attention to the Jazz, saying, “The Jazz’s improvement isn’t as straightforward as the Rockets’ or Sixers’, though — they did it by tinkering with the margins of a roster that had missed the postseason for four consecutive years, and they’re capitalizing on their two young stars finally coming of age.”

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