There are few attachments as strong as the one between a diehard fan of an NBA team and the best role player on that team.
Sure, maybe Mother/Son wins out. Husband/Wife is a strong candidate. As a man who loves his Mom and wife very much…
Let’s pick a different route, shall we?
Tari Eason has arguably been the Houston Rockets’ best role player for a few seasons. The term “role player” in itself can be vacuous. Was Dillon Brooks a role player? He certainly didn’t seem to think so.
Eason is unequivocally
a role player. His game is predicated on outworking everyone – or at least, it was up until last season. Eason traded some effort for (waning) offensive utility in 2025-26.
In 2026-27, he needs to recapture that role player magic.
Rockets’ Eason needs to be himself
Eason’s “secret sauce” has always been his combined Offensive Rebounding and Steal percentages. If you’ve read even five of my articles, you’ve probably read this before: Tari Eason generates extra possessions at an elite clip. If you haven’t noticed, extra possessions are kind of the Rockets’ whole shtick.
So, a look at his Offensive Rebound % over the years is a touch depressing. It’s declined in every season, from 12.0% as a rookie (an exceptional mark for a non-big) to 9.0% last season.
That’s still a strong mark, but for context, it ranked 17th in the NBA in 2025-26, whereas 12.0% would have landed 8th. In my view, that’s the first order of business for Eason in 2026-27. He needs to get back to a psychological place where every defensive rebound the opposing team collects is a grievous personal insult.
What else does he need to do?
Eason needs to hit his threes
There have been times when Eason has flashed the ability to dribble into space, pull up, and hit a mid-range jumper. He’s sneakily OK at scoring in the half-court:
But that shouldn’t be his focus in 2026-27.
Unless it starts going really well. Until then, the key for Eason on the offensive end is three-point consistency.
Remember that waning offensive utility? Last year was a tale of two seasons for Eason. He was one of the league’s most reliable catch-and-shoot three-point shooters for half the season, and then his efficiency fell off a cliff.
This year, it would probably be preferable if Eason could just hit 37- 38% of his threes reliably throughout the year. It’s hard to identify that as a “priority”. Every NBA player is trying to hit every three they take. Hopefully Chip Engelland’s presence will help.
It’s also fair to say that, given everything else he brings to the table, Eason is a fine three-point shooter. On this team specifically, he just needs to be a bit better. Alperen Sengun and Amen Thompson are both more important to the team’s success, and they both struggle as shooters, so Eason can’t.
Subjectively, I love Eason. I want him to retire a Rocket. I want him to be that Josh Hart type of presence where fans say, “The Rockets don’t win that championship if not for Tari Eason”.
If you’re reading this: Hi Mom!
