Tuomas Iisalo failed his first test as the Grizzlies' head coach

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! Tuomas Iisalo failed his first big test as the Memphis Grizzlies' head coach.

The Grizzlies withstood everything the Warriors could throw at them. A huge appearance from "Playoff" Jimmy Butler, with 38 points, a flurry of late-game heroics from Stephen Curry and his 37 points, a bunch of fouls from Draymond Green. And, yet, still, Memphis had a clear chance to at least tie its play-in game against Golden State in the waning moments.

Memphis calls a timeout. The score is 119 to 116. The Grizzlies have the ball with a chance to tie it. This is it. This is the moment. The Grizzlies need to draw something up to either get the quickest bucket possible or a good look at a 3-pointer. What ya got, Iisalo?

Turns out he had a five-second violation in the pocket.

What's hilarious about that is the five-second count wasn't even just a five-second count. It was more like seven seconds, if we're honest. Santi Aldama probably got more time than he actually should've and the Grizzlies still couldn't get the ball in.

Credit to Golden State for locking up. But, uh, Memphis, WYD? That's an unfortunate way to lose. You don't even get a shot up. You don't get anything. You just...lose. That stinks.

It looked like the Grizzlies were trying to set a flare screen for Desmond Bane to get open in the corner, but it took way too long to develop. Morant was the second option on the play, but he didn't get open quickly enough. The five-second call happens as a result.

The first thing that popped into my mind was, "Does this happen if Taylor Jenkins is still the coach?" Memphis fired its coach with just a handful of games left in the season. In a situation where execution is extremely necessary, does a coach with more experience with this team get it done? I'm not sure. Maybe that's unfair, but this certainly feels like something that'll be a talking point going forward.

Cam Ward is saying the thing out loud

I know Cam Ward will be a Titan by week. You know Cam Ward is will be a Titan by next week. Everybody knows Cam Ward will be a Titan by next week. The worst-kept secret in the NFL is that Cam Ward will be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL draft.

If you may have thought otherwise, Ward himself has all but confirmed it at this point. Here's Bryan Kalbrosky with deets:

"While it has now felt obvious for some time that the Titans plan to select Ward with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, the pro prospect all but confirmed that while chatting live with his fans.

Nearly every answer he gave, in some way, tied back to the players or coaching staff on the Titans. It was obvious that this was a man who knew the plans of the organization."

Y'all. This is too funny. Listen to him name his favorite coaches.

There was more included on the stream that Kalbrosky put in his post. It's all a pretty good laugh. But the bottom line is this: The beans are spilled.

Get ready to buy your Cam Ward jerseys, Titans fans. Lock it in.

Another reason for Aaron Rodgers to retire

Aaron Rodgers finally has another reason to quit football. Well, you know, aside from the fact that nobody wants him on their team anymore.

Blake Schuster pointed out that the NFL just banned Rodgers' preferred helmet — the Schutt Air XP Pro Q11 LTD. How can he ever play football safely now?!?

Here's Blake with more:

"Rodger's preferred helmet — the Schutt Air XP Pro Q11 LTD — has been banned by the NFL, As ProFootballTalk's Mike Florio pointed out. Rodgers wore the model during the 2024 season. Now it's entirely unavailable.

But Rodgers should really see this as great news. He now has everything he's ever wanted: A reason to give up pro football, not because he is a shell of himself on the field (which he is), but because the league won't let him protect himself how he wants to. Sure, his brain is already mush, but would anything be more Rodgers than grandstanding over an objectively good safety regulation that impacts his personal health decisions?"

Poor Rodgers. He's being silenced. I can't wait to hear about this during his next appearance on the Pat McAfee show.

Quick hits: Every NFL team's draft needs ... Jalen Ramsey landing spots ... and more

— Christian D'Andrea outlined every NFL team's needs in the draft, from the Titans to the Eagles. This is a fun one.

— Cory Woodroof has five potential landing spots for Jalen Ramsey as the Dolphins look to trade their star corner.

— Prince Grimes makes picks for the insane Western Conference playoff slate in the NBA. This is so tough.

— Meg Hall put together winners and losers for the WNBA draft. Shoutout to Hailey Van Lith for betting on herself at TCU. It paid off.

— This was such a weird move from this reporter. Andrew Joseph has more.

— Everything at UNC is weird these days. Here's Christian with more on this strange Shane McMahon story.

That's a wrap, folks. Thanks so much for reading. Appreciate you. Have a great one.

-Sykes ✌️