Tari Eason on participating in summer league: 'Can't simulate it anywhere else'

Former LSU Tigers standout and current Houston Rockets forward Tari Eason was a participant in the 2023 NBA Summer League. With Eason being a second-year player, he did have the option of not participating this year if he and the Rockets coaching staff chose. And at halftime of Houston’s Summer League game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, Eason explained why he decided to participate instead of sitting out.

“You know, (the) same thing as Jabari (Smith). I had a good rookie year, but I didn’t have the best rookie year, and we didn’t have the best season,” said Eason. “So it’s always good to come out here, compete, a good bump. You really can’t simulate it anywhere else during the summer.”

Like many other stars and second-year players across the association, Eason appears to be finished with the 2023 Summer League. The former Tigers forward played in two games and put up a strong stat line in the process. Eason averaged 23 points on 48.7 percent shooting from the field, 9.5 rebounds, four assists, and three blocks per game for the Rockets.

Eason’s teammate, another fellow SEC Tiger, but from Auburn, also selected by Houston in the 2022 Draft Jabari Smith, was a participant in this year’s Summer League games too. The two have many similarities dating back to their days in college. But as of right now, the biggest thing that Eason and Smith share is the mindset of getting better and prepared for the Rockets’ 2023 season in hopes of getting Houston back into the playoffs.

Eason and Smith connect for top-shelf highlight against Detroit

While their 2023 Summer League time on the court might be over, the duo delivered one of the top plays in Las Vegas. In the second quarter of the Rockets’ game against the Detroit Pistons, Smith more than made his presence felt thanks to an Eason dime.

Eason showed off his guard-like handles, getting into the lane with a behind-the-back dribble move, dishing the ball for Smith to take care of the rest, and he delivered, throwing down an emphatic one-handed jam that can be seen below.

Tari Eason finds Jabari Smith Jr. 🔥

Smith Jr. up to 20 PTS in the first half on ESPN2!#NBA2KSummerLeague pic.twitter.com/piq8wg55Lj

— NBA (@NBA) July 9, 2023

Smith has had a strong showing so far during the NBA summer league, scoring 33 points and 7 rebounds in his first game versus the Trailblazers followed by a 38-point 7 rebound game versus Detroit.

He helped lead the Rockets to a 113-101 win on Sunday, making Houston 2-0 thus far during the NBA summer league.

There’s no question his offensive game has looked impressive so far this summer, and it will be interesting to see if he can take a leap in his sophomore season under new head coach Ime Udoka.

On3’s Kaiden Smith contributed to this story