Rockets fans will quickly make a stunning Tari Eason realization

As the Houston Rockets enter the season, the question on the forefront of everyone's mind revolves around how they will address the absence of starting point guard Fred Vanvleet and, by extension, if their internal solutions will be enough to propel them back into championship contention.

Yet, as beloved young forward Tari Eason nears his restricted free agency, fans of the team will quickly come to the realization that there is a real possibility he could be traded in order to fill this need externally.

While there are a number of other, more preferable pieces to be moved, there are restrictions on these players that would limit Houston's ability to make a trade until mid-season, and, if the combination of Amen Thompson and Reed Sheppard at point guard proves to be insufficient, moving Eason could solve multiple predicaments for the front office.

Trading Tari Eason would be a tough pill to swallow, but it could ultimately be the right move

With the potentially season-ending injury to VanVleet, the team has made it clear that they will turn to a combination of the existing playmaking of Alperen Sengun and a change of role for both Thompson and Sheppard in order to try to keep their offense afloat.

Yet, while both Thompson and Sheppard have proven in the past to be relatively capable ball-handlers, neither has proven they can take on that kind of offensive workload.

With Durant under contract for just a singular season as of now, Houston's urgency is at an all-time high, and, although they are known as a relatively patient organization, it could become quickly apparent that the right move would be to trade for a more experienced point guard to lead the offense.

While a player like Clint Capela, Steven Adams or even Dorian Finney-Smith would be ideal trade pieces given the team's depth at those positions, all of these players are ineligible to be dealt until December 15 as a result of the contracts they signed this summer.

Moreover, Eason, as an emerging young bench player, would likely fetch a higher return than any of these players, granted that an additional salary would need to be included for purposes of salary matching.

To make matters more complicated, Eason is due for his rookie extension next offseason, and, if he ultimately demands a figure north of $20 million, he could put the team in a financial bind that would severely limit their financial flexibility moving forward.

Therefore, while Eason is clearly beloved by fans and the coaching staff alike, it could be a real possibility that he could be on the trade market this season, and it could be the necessary move to make in order to bring this team back into contention.