Tuomas Iisalo Says 5-0 Grizzlies Are 'Building Something New'

The Memphis Grizzlies went 4-0 on a road trip that ended Thursday night in Portland, where they beat the Trail Blazers 124-103 at Moda Center.

Eight Grizzlies scored in double figures. Cameron Boozer and Isaiah Stewart led the team with 18 points apiece, and nobody reached 20.

Grizzlies coach Tuomas Iisalo said Thursday was a fantastic team performance overall.

"The word I've used is promising," Iisalo said. "It's only the beginning of the season. We're five games in. We all understand it, and anything can happen. The way the group has persevered during these games and found that, the word we've used, poise, very resilient, just we find an answer."

"And it's been different guys on different nights," Iisalo continued. "And it's just an incredibly cool feeling as a coach to coach that type of group who stick together and believe 100% into what we are doing and each other. So that's why I say promising. And we know we're at the beginning of our journey together. We're building something new, and we're not in a hurry."

The season opened Oct. 21 at FedExForum with a 123-103 win over the Utah Jazz. Ty Jerome scored 45 points that night.

Two nights later at Golden State, the Grizzlies scored the final 17 points of a 111-108 win. Jerome had 28, and Boozer had 25.

Jerome scored 31 in a 123-112 win at Sacramento on Sunday. Utah twice pulled within a point in the final 3:37 on Monday before Memphis won 110-105 at Delta Center, and Cedric Coward described a group that shows a lot of poise after that one.

On Thursday, Stewart came off the bench and made 7 of his 10 shots. Coward scored 17 and added 7 rebounds, 4 assists, and 3 steals. Zach Edey scored 13 on 6-of-8 shooting.

GG Jackson added 12 points and 7 rebounds. Jaylen Wells, Jerome, and Quinten Post had 10 apiece, and Cam Spencer had 8 points, 6 rebounds, and 8 assists off the bench.

The game was tied 58-58 at halftime. Memphis took the second half 66-45 and led by as many as 24.

The Grizzlies fired Taylor Jenkins in March 2025 with nine games left in the regular season and named Iisalo the interim coach. He had joined the staff as the lead assistant before the 2024-25 season. Memphis went 4-5 in those nine games, reached the playoffs through the Play-In Tournament, and was swept by the Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round.

Memphis removed the interim tag on May 2, 2025. Iisalo became the first Finnish-born head coach in NBA history. Before coming to Memphis, he won the 2023-24 EuroCup with Paris Basketball.

His first full season ended at 25-57, 13th in the Western Conference.

Over the summer, Memphis drafted Boozer third overall after one season at Duke. On June 29, the Grizzlies traded Ja Morant to Portland for Jerami Grant and Kris Murray.

Morant had 14 points and 3 assists in 23 minutes against his former team Thursday. Grant went 1-of-8 for 2 points in 26:46.

Memphis hosts the Sacramento Kings on Saturday at 7 p.m. CT to open a four-game homestand. The New Orleans Pelicans visit Monday, followed by the Indiana Pacers on Wednesday and the Oklahoma City Thunder on Nov. 6.