2022 NBA Draft: Houston Rockets select Tari Eason, LSU forward

LSU forward Tari Eason is off the board in the 2022 NBA Draft. With the No. 17 pick of the first round, Eason was selected by the Houston Rockets.

The Tigers’ sophomore big is off to the big leagues. Eason only spent one season in Baton Rogue, but a few months in yellow and purple was all he needed to leap from transfer afterthought to NBA draft pick. Who could’ve expected such a breakout from him when he arrived last offseason? Very few people.

Tari Eason’s College Journey

Eason had some pedigree as a recruit. He was a little bit outside the top 100 per the On3 Consensus and was a solid four-star pickup in the 2020 class, where he committed to Cincinnati out of high school. He arrived to the Queen City in a rough year for the program. After a successful first season where UC would have made the tournament, the bottom fell out for Bearcats coach John Brannen in year two. Cincinnati barely cracked .500 at 12-11 as the team missed the postseason and Brannen was later fired due to failures on the court and reports of unacceptable behavior at practices.

Eason bolted for LSU after one year at Cincy, and boy did he find the perfect spot. Will Wade’s Tigers became an elite defensive unit in 2022, posting top-five defensive efficiency numbers for most of the year. A big credit to Eason following a huge leap as a sophomore. He played tough-minded basketball as an athletic and versatile forward with a big frame. He and Efton Reid made for a lockdown front court. While LSU’s lankier guards pressured the daylight out of opposing backcourts.

That’s why Eason earned such high draft stock. He’s a big-bodied forward that defends his tail off and also can step out and shoot the three. After hitting 24% of his threes at Cincinnati, Eason stepped up to make 35.9% of them on 2.4 attempts per game. At 6-foot-8 and 215 pounds, NBA scouts LOVED that jumper.