NBA
Houston could reportedly wait to sign PF Tari Eason to a contract extension
Zach Wolpin is an NBA and NFL expert who's been betting on the league for over three years now. Wolpin has been a fan of the NBA and has been watching for a decade and a half. He covers the latest news and stories surrounding the league daily. His passion in life is watching sports and being able to share that through his sports writing. He has written about the NBA and other sports leagues through various media outlets over the years like Sir Charles In Charge, G-Men HQ, and TAP into South Plainfield. Before he became an NBA News Writer, Wolpin attended Montclair State University where he graduated in 2021. He studied Sports Media and Writing while in school.
All posts by Zach WolpinUpdated24 mins ago on August 07, 2025
Ahead of the 2025-26 season, the Rockets have made several upgrades to their roster. They added Kevin Durant, Dorian Finney-Smith, and Josh Okogie.
Additionally, Houston has signed players to long-term deals in the 2025 offseason. While this sets the team up for future success, it limits their flexibility. The Athletic’s John Hollinger reported that could wait to extend PF Tari Eason. In the past, teams would extend first-round picks after their third season. Hollinger believes Houston will wait to help manage their payroll.
Tari Eason is a restricted free agent after the 2025-26 season
The Rockets may wait to extend Tari Eason to help manage their payroll for the next three seasons, per @johnhollinger
Hollinger also listed Eason’s “half-court offensive limitations” and the positional logjam at power forward with KD and Jabari Smith Jr. as other reasons why pic.twitter.com/nPn93E2RMP
— SleeperRockets (@SleeperRockets) August 7, 2025
With the 17th pick in the 2022 NBA draft, the Rockets selected PF Tari Eason out of LSU. The 24-year-old has played three seasons for Houston. Eason has appeared in 161 games and has made 21 starts. As a rookie in 2022-23, Eason played in all 82 games for the Rockets and made five starts. Unfortunately, Eason had season-ending surgery in 2023-24 after just 22 games. He missed 60 games for Houston.
He bounced back in 2024-24, playing in 57 of 82 games for the Rockets and making a career-high 16 starts. Additionally, his 12.0 points and 1.5 assists per game were new personal bests. With the acquisition of Kevin Durant, the Rockets have a logjam of depth at PF. Kevin Durant is the starter, and Dorian Finney-Smith is listed as the backup.
Houston Rockets Tari Eason cooking up at @osimplis runs 🔥 Tari just turned 24 years old @TAR13ASON pic.twitter.com/7jPUTwd5op
— Swish Cultures (@swishcultures_) August 2, 2025
Tari Eason could play more SF in 2025-26 or see his playing time decrease. Recently, The Athletic’s John Hollinger reported that the Rockets could wait to extend Tari Eason. The team has a lot invested in their payroll over the next three seasons. They are in no rush to add Eason’s extension to the books. Houston values the young forward.
He’s a reliable piece off the bench for head coach Ime Udoka. Eason averaged 24.9 minutes per game off the bench last season. They’ve seen him develop slowly over his career. Tari Eason is on a club-exercised $5.6 million deal for the 2025-26 season. This offseason, he becomes an unrestricted free agent. That increased the likelihood Eason stays with Houston. A long-term deal will happen in the future for Eason. He must stay patient .
