Newton South’s Lions featured two daughters of WBZ sports guy Steve Burton, which makes them the granddaughters of the late Ron Burton, the first player ever drafted by the Boston Patriots. Kendall Burton, a junior, was on her way to becoming a scholarship baller at Villanova and her freshman sister, Kayla, would wind up playing at Lehigh before coming back to Boston, where she’s now’s a sports anchor/reporter at NBC Sports Boston.

I couldn’t tell you who won that game — Jackie reminded me that it was Westford — but my lasting memory is one of a little girl who spent the night practicing her handle on a side court. It was hard to miss 9-year-old Veronica Burton. It’s not often you see a little kid running up and down a court, casually and skillfully dribbling a ball in each hand.

“I remember those days,” Veronica’s mom, Ginni, recalled this past week. “There was one night when a coach from Villanova was scouting Kendall and I heard the coach say, ‘Newton South should put Veronica into this game.’ ”

Veronica Burton (third from left, on ground with basketball) poses with older sister Kendall’s Bay State Jaguars team.Courtesy/Burton family

Ginni was an All-America swimmer at Northwestern before marrying Steve and starting their family of superstars. (Son Austin played quarterback at Purdue and UCLA.) She’s a fitness instructor and aqua personal trainer when she’s not flying from Atlanta to San Francisco for the WNBA Finals, which conclude Saturday night in the Bay Area, where Veronica Burton’s Golden State Valkyries play the Atlanta Dream in Game 7.

The WNBA turned 30 this year and there was considerable embarrassment when the league played Game 6 of the Finals (an 80-69 Dream victory) at 12:30 Thursday afternoon in Atlanta. Saturday night’s finale will cap a season of controversy owed to culture wars, national anthem protests, leadership incompetence, and a faux Fox News-driven narrative insisting that the league’s mean girls are bullying popular superstar Caitlin Clark.

Emerging from all that emotion, exhaustion, and debate, we have the feel-good, All-American story of Veronica Burton, a young woman of New England sports royalty who’s earned a place at the top of her sport with hard work, determination, and selfless leadership.

Veronica Burton (with clipboard) at age 11 with her middle school travel team.Courtesy/Burton Family

Burton’s path to the WNBA Finals was paved with potholes. After a four-year career at Northwestern, where she spent a lot of time guarding Iowa sensation Clark, Burton was drafted seventh by the Dallas Wings in 2022. She didn’t get a lot of playing time in two seasons, was waived in May 2024, then was signed by Connecticut, starting only one game in the ’24 season.

She’d already played professionally in Poland and Australia by then, not content with her place in the league. A chance to play in Israel was aborted by the Hamas terrorist attack in October 2023.

“She had signed a contract with Israel and was a little late getting over there,” recalled Ginni Burton. “Her flight was scheduled for Oct. 7, and she had checked her bag. I woke up and saw awful images on my phone, but at the time no one really knew the scope of that day. Veronica didn’t want to break her contract, but as the day unfolded, it was pretty clear we didn’t want her to get on that plane. That was heavy. She was able to get out of that contract and instead played in Poland.”

After the 2024 season, Burton was selected by the Valkyries in the WNBA’s expansion draft. She’s been the starting point guard for every game in the history of the two-year-old franchise. She had only two turnovers in 75 minutes in Golden State’s Game 4 and 5 victories. She canned three daggers in the closing stretch of Game 4, finishing with 13 points and five assists. She had 13 points with eight rebounds and four blocks in Game 5.

“I think she’s the best point guard right now in the league,” said Burton’s coach, Natalie Nakase.

Now she’s one win away from a championship. Game 7. Saturday, 8 p.m.

“This is it,” Burton said after the Game 6 loss. “This is what we’ve worked for … it’s do or die officially.”

⋅ Quiz: Name five Hall of Famers who played for the 1982 Milwaukee Brewers team that lost the World Series to the Cardinals; 2. Name five NFL franchises with five or fewer playoff appearances since 2000. (Answers below.)

⋅ A.J. Brown was held out of practice Thursday because of an ankle/knee issue. Oh, boy. Here we go. The Patriots gave up a bundle to acquire the diva wideout, but haven’t seen much impact. Brown sustained a high ankle sprain opening night in Seattle, missed four games, then came back with hands of stone in a couple of tepid performances against the Jets and Bears. Now his status seems to be up in the air. Is he going to be another Jack Clark, Pablo Sandoval, or Gordon Hayward? Or do we see a breakout performance Sunday with a couple of TD catches in Miami?

Is Sunday’s game against the Dolphins when Patriots receiver A.J. Brown finally breaks out?John Tlumacki/Globe Staff

⋅ The Brewers embarrassed the Rays, who swept the Yankees, who beat the Red Sox, 18-2, in a two-game demolition. Does that tell you anything about how far the Red Sox are from being true contenders?

⋅ There’s much belief that the expected Dec. 1 lockout will inspire a flurry of free agent deals in November. Why do I have a sneaking suspicion that your Boston Red Sox will not take part in any “flurry” of signings? The betting here is that the Sox will sit on the sidelines in November waiting for the lockout to begin, then explain to fans that their hands are tied because of the work stoppage. It’s perfect cover for doing nothing to add payroll. It’s more likely that the Sox will save a bag of dough when/if Sonny Gray signs elsewhere.

⋅ USA Today ranked the World Series winners of this century and the 2018 Red Sox (119 overall wins) finished No. 1. The 2004 Sox ranked fifth, the ′07 Sox 10th, and the ′13 Sox 20th. The ’04 Sox won eight straight postseason games after their 19-8 loss in Game 3 of the American League Championship Series. It was an MLB record at the time, but has since been tied by the 2005 White Sox, the 2014 Royals, the 2019 Nationals, and this year’s Brewers. The Brewers missed a chance at nine straight when they lost Game 4 in extras to the Rays on Tuesday.

The 2018 Red Sox are No. 1 this century, at least according to USA Today.Stan Grossfeld/Globe Staff

⋅ The defending NBA champion Knicks got off to an 0-3 start before beating the Pistons in New York on Tuesday. The last NBA franchise to start 0-4 after winning the championship was the 1969-70 Celtics, who were quite different from this year’s Knicks. The ’69-70 Celtics were dealing with the retirements of Bill Russell and Sam Jones, who combined to win 21 rings, including 1969 when they finished fourth with a 48-34 record, then somehow beat the Wilt Chamberlain-Jerry West-Elgin Baylor Lakers in a seventh game (the “balloon game”) at the LA Forum. In October 1969, the Celtics ran it back with Hank Finkel at center and lost their first four before beating the Bucks. That team finished 34-48, out of the playoffs. Four years later, they were world champions with Dave Cowens playing center.

⋅ Nick (Good Night) Nurse is the 76ers’ 17th coach since Billy Cunningham led them to their most recent NBA championship in 1982-83. The list of Sixer coaches who tried and failed includes Doc Rivers, the late Chris Ford, and Maurice Cheeks, who was fired 23 games into his fourth season. Cheeks is now an assistant with the Knicks.

Nick Nurse is the latest coach attempting to end the 76ers’ championship drought.Charles Krupa/AP Photo/Charles Krupa

⋅ Endicott’s football team defeated Nichols, 86-0, in Conference of New England action in Beverly last weekend. It was 51-0 at halftime. No word on if Geno Auriemma was in attendance.

⋅ Good luck getting tickets to Celtics vs. 76ers Nov. 10 in Philadelphia. Wonder if Philly’s concessions will offer a lamb chop special.

⋅ What would things be like around here if Boston University or Boston College got too big for the Beanpot? That’s basically what’s happened in Philadelphia, where college basketball’s “Big 5″ has been a basketball tradition on a par with no other. Villanova simply got too big for the best annual college local hoops event in the nation. Since 1954, it’s been a scheduling arrangement among Villanova, Pennsylvania, Temple, La Salle, and Saint Joseph’s. Games were originally played at The Palestra, which opened in 1927. The Big 5’s round-robin format was dropped in recent years and Drexel was added as a sixth member, but it’s all going away next year because Villanova is simply too cool for the school tournament. A cold statement from ’Nova read, in part, “Ultimately we must also balance what is in the best interests of Villanova basketball for success in the modern landscape of college athletics.” Ugh. So starting next year the event will proceed without its most visible team. Something tells me this would not have happened if Jay Wright was still at Villanova. I’m betting even the pope hates the end of the Big 5.

⋅ USA Today has the Bruins third in its latest power rankings, trailing only Carolina and Edmonton. Connor McDavid and the Oilers visit the Garden Wednesday, Dec. 30.

Connor McDavid and the Oilers are off to a hot start.Melissa Majchrzak/AP Photo/Melissa Majchrzak

⋅ The Sports Museum has put together another impressive lineup for its annual “Tradition” event at TD Garden on Thursday, Nov. 19. Always one of the best nights of the Boston sports year, this year’s honorees include Andre Tippett, Derek Lowe, Dana Barros, Jim Calhoun, and Boston Bruins/Fleet Olympic gold medalists Charlie McAvoy, Jeremy Swayman, Megan Keller, Aerin Frankel, and Haley Winn. Presenters include MacMullan, Dante Scarnecchia, and Kemba Walker. For information and tickets, call (617) 480-4257 or visit sportsmuseum.org.

⋅ Honoring women in Boston sports who advance and provide community through mentorship, networking, and professional development, WISE (Women in Sports and Events) will host its Boston Women of Inspiration Awards Friday, Nov. 6 at the Hub on Causeway at 6 p.m. Previous winners include MacMullan and Kathryn Tappen. For tickets, visit boston.wiseworks.org/home.

⋅ RIP to Ross Newhan of the Los Angeles Times, the last word at MLB games in LA and Anaheim for 40 seasons, who died last Sunday at the age of 89. The press boxes at Dodger Stadium and the Big A were always a better place when Newhan was there.

⋅ Quiz answers: 1. Rollie Fingers, Paul Molitor, Ted Simmons, Don Sutton, Robin Yount; 2. Cleveland Browns (three), Jacksonville Jaguars (five), Las Vegas Raiders (five), Detroit Lions (five), Arizona Cardinals (five).

Dan Shaughnessy is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at daniel.shaughnessy@globe.com. Follow him @dan_shaughnessy.