Rory McIlroy's Masters win just made him a legend

This is For The Win’s daily newsletter, The Morning Win. Did a friend recommend or forward this to you? If so, subscribe here. Here’s Mike Sykes.

Good morning, Winners! Rory McIlroy has finally done it. He's officially entered arguably the most prestigious club in all of sports. He did what he'd never done before — he won the Masters.

He certainly didn't make it easy, though it probably should've been once Bryson DeChambeau completely collapsed down the stretch of the tournament. If he'd just nailed his putt on the 18th, he could've gotten it done right then and there. But he didn't. So he entered into a playoff with Justin Rose.

Suddenly, we all couldn't stop thinking about last year's U.S. Open. The 2011 Masters collapse became fresh in all of our minds. But Rory kept calm and got the job done. After 11 tries, he finally got the green jacket.

Good on him. McIlroy was overcome with emotion after finishing the job.

What a special moment. McIlroy has been waiting on this for so long. Eleven years. That's how long it took him to complete his career Grand Slam. He's the sixth player in the sport's history to pull this off. The other five are Ben Hogan, Gary Player, Gene Sarazen, Jack Nicklaus and Tiger Woods. For them? The path certainly wasn't as grueling. It only took them nine tries combined to get it done, according to CBS Sports.

But whatever. The journey isn't about how long it took. What matters is arriving at the destination. McIlroy has arrived. He's now gone from being just another guy — albeit a really, really talented guy who has won a lot — to being one of the guys. He's now officially one of golf's legends. The names I mentioned above are some of the best of the absolute best in the game. Now, McIlroy goes on that list.

It might've taken a long time. The path there may not have been the cleanest. He may have struggled a bit to finally pull it off. But guess what? He pulled it off. Those tears of joy he cried on the green were earned.

Well done, Rory. Well done.

We deserve a 1 through 16 NBA playoff

I understand that we'll never get it. There are logistical reasons the NBA will never ditch its two-conference system for the playoffs and go with a 1 through 16-seeded NBA playoff.

But after watching the Warriors and Clippers play arguably the best game of the NBA's regular season on Sunday just to avoid having to play the Grizzlies on Tuesday in the play-in, I've become radicalized. This cannot continue.

THE WEST IS A BLOODBATH: Here's the West's playoff picture, featuring a ton of matchups that feel like they could be Western Conference Finals pairings

The West's play-in will be filled with high-quality basketball. We'll watch the Grizzlies and Warriors go at it for the No. 7 seed as two 48-win teams. The loser of that game will probably lock in the No. 8 seed. Meanwhile, out in the East, you can watch the Magic play the Hawks. The Bulls and Heat will also get to play for a playoff chance despite being dumpster fires (respectfully!) for most of the year.

This ain't right, man. We can't keep doing this. NBA I am begging you to make a change here. Please.

It's Paige Bueckers night!

The WNBA draft is finally upon us, folks. Pagie Bueckers officially becomes a Dallas Wing — or so we think, anyway. There are still rumblings that Paige doesn't want to play in Dallas. The storyline just got a bit more interesting with the announcement Bueckers' new 3-year contract with Unrivaled.

Ultimately, I think she still goes and plays for Dallas. She's said that she'll play wherever she's drafted. But the speculation is fun! Especially as a Mystics fan. Olivia Miles completely broke the draft with her decision to stay in school. This is going to be such an interesting night.

Keep it locked here at For The Win for draft grades and coverage tonight at 7:30 p.m. ET.

READ MORE: Here's a comprehensive look at mock drafts from around the internet

Quick hits: Rory's win in photos ... NBA play-in odds ... and more

— We've got Rory McIlroy's win here for you in a gallery of photos. What a moment.

— Prince Grimes put together odds for the NBA's play-in tournament here.

— The Western Conference is going to be so tough. Robert Zeglinski breaks it down here.

— Jordan Spieth whacked a fan in the most unfortunate place with a club. This is so bad (and hilarious).

— Everything about the Oakland Athletics is embarrassing. Sheesh.

— Take a look at Rory McIlroy and his wife, Erica, in photos through the years.

That's a wrap, folks. Thanks so much for reading today. We appreciate you. Peace.

-Sykes ✌️