Warriors remain team to beat

By David Mullen

It is time to come clean. I admit that I missed half of my preseason NBA Finals prediction by a mile. Actually, by 432 miles.

While I did correctly have the Golden State Warriors representing the Western Conference in the Finals, which began May 30, I thought that the Boston Celtics would win the Eastern Conference. But the Celtics fell apart in the playoffs, meaning that one must look north of the border as the Toronto Raptors will play in their first championship series ever.

Raptors forward Kawhi Leonard turned up his performance and played with great focus on both offense and defense as Toronto shocked the favored Milwaukee Bucks in the Eastern Conference Finals. Despite having a home court advantage, their reward for their great play is facing the Warriors, reaching the NBA Finals for the fifth consecutive season. Golden State has cemented their legacy as one of the greatest teams of all time.

Despite losing forward Kevin Durant to a calf injury, the Warriors proved too difficult to manage for an inexperienced Portland Trail Blazers team in the Western Conference finals. The play of guard Stephen Curry and forward Draymond Green filled the void left by Durant. The Warriors also made fans realize just how deep they are on the bench. That depth will take the Warriors to their fourth World Championship in five years. Warriors will win in five games.

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Three recent deaths had an impact on the local and national sports scene, with the first being highly respected Dallas Morning News sportswriter Gerry Fraley. I remember when Fraley joined The News in 1989 after a stint as a beat writer covering the Atlanta Braves for the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He would join a team of sportswriters in Dallas that at the time were as good as any in the country.

While Fraley was versatile, had a keen knowledge of all sports and a great attention to detail and deadline, in my mind it was his baseball writing that set him apart. He was one of the best in the business, and with his long gray hair and stocky build, Fraley even looked the part of a veteran sportswriter that could have been right at home in New York or Chicago.

He asked tough questions, and the few times I was with him at press conferences, he had a “take no prisoners” attitude. He would get “his” questions answered, having little time for whatever angle another reporter might be taking.

      Fraley died on May 24 at 64 after a two-year bout with cancer, leaving a void on the local sports journalism front.

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Quarterback Bart Starr, who led the Green Bay Packers to victories in Super Bowl I and II, died on May 26 after complications from a stroke. He was 85.

Starr was involved in one of the most famous plays in NFL — and Dallas Cowboys — history when he scored a touchdown with 16 seconds left on the frozen tundra of Lambeau Field on Dec. 31, 1967, in the league championship game. Of course, that game is better known as the “Ice Bowl,” with the temperature falling to 13 degrees below zero. It is considered to be the coldest game in NFL history.

A 17th round draft pick out of Alabama in 1959, Starr was considered too much of a gentleman to quarterback the Packers, given the gruff demeanor of head coach Vince Lombardi. But the two built a mutual respect and created one of the most successful teams in NFL history. Annually, the NFL honors the player showing the most outstanding character and leadership with the Bart Starr Award. 

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Despite playing for 22 seasons, having a swing that made other professionals jealous and winning a batting title in 1980, Bill Buckner was best known for an error while playing first base in game six in the 1986 World Series as a member of the Boston Red Sox, which helped the New York Mets win a championship. For Buckner (pictured) to be remembered for that faux pas is not doing him justice. First as part of the legendary Los Angeles Dodgers teams of the 1970s, Buckner amassed 2,715 hits in his career, more than many Hall of Famers. A disciplined hitter, he often walked more times in a season than he struck out. Buckner died on May 27 after battling dementia. He was 69.