Tari Eason immediately proves Rockets know exactly what they're doing

Tari Eason had a brutal first night of the 2025-26 season. The Rockets forward, who broke out last season but couldn't reach a contract extension with the team in the offseason, went 1-6, scored 5 points, grabbed 5 rebounds, and had 3 turnovers in the Rockets' opening night thriller against the Oklahoma City Thunder.

With Dorian Finney-Smith — a player who does a lot of the same things Eason does — set to return in the (hopefully) near future, and now the unease of contract negotiations hanging over Eason next summer, it looks very early on that the Rockets opting to let Eason play out this season without an extension might be the correct call.

Now, that's not because Eason isn't deserving of an extension. Saying that after one rough game would be pretty silly. He's a heck of a player who will have a lucrative payday next summer. Rather, it's because Eason's role on this specific Rockets team became a tad precarious after the front office gave Finney-Smith a long-term contract. Thus, having 2025-26 be a trial year for a guy who may be the odd man out on this Rockets roster looks like good managerial work.

Could Tari Eason quickly play himself into trade conversations?

I am a big Tari Eason fan. He was awesome last year and there's still so much untapped upside in his game. Even thinking about him should not be a decision this front office takes lightly. But this team wants to compete for a championship now. With plenty of depth at the forward position, no depth at all in the backcourt, and Eason being a restricted free agent after this season, I think the 24 year-old could find himself on the trade block much quicker than fans realize.

Swapping Eason for a point guard at the deadline could be the kind of move that boosts the Rockets into the upper echelon of the Western Conference. I know this feels a little histrionic after one bad game on October 21st, but in the modern NBA, where teams are almost forced into making trades that would have been unheard of in the past, everything must be considered. This team might end up being confident enough in Amen Thompson, Finney-Smith, and Kevin Durant that Eason becomes a trade chip who would be highly sought after.

Tari Eason is going to be really good for the Rockets this year, and really good in the NBA for a long time. But him being on the final year of his rookie contract won't tank his trade value because restricted free agency is very different than unrestricted. Plus, if Eason balls out this year, he's still under team control. If he doesn't, and the Rockets decide to move in a different direction, they'll still have enough firepower at that position that it wouldn't feel like a detrimental loss.