When you mention Seattle to the average person, they immediately think about the Space Needle or Pike Place Market. These places are must-see attractions for tourists. But if you ask a diehard basketball fan what to do in the Pacific Northwest during basketball season, they will direct you to a couple of local high school gyms and tell you to check out the abundance of potential NBA talent playing on a nightly basis.
Not many would think of coastal Washington as a hub for developing players with all the physical tools and mindset to compete in the NBA. Yet, the city has produced players who have had some longevity in the league, such as Jamal Crawford, who won multiple Sixth Man of the Year awards, as well as NBA champion Jason Terry.
Some of today’s rising stars like Kevin Porter Jr. (Houston Rockets), DeJounte Murray (San Antonio Spurs), and Michael Porter Jr. (Denver Nuggets) never miss the opportunity to brag on their city.
On Thursday, two other Seattle natives heard their names called in the first round of the 2022 NBA draft. Former Duke University forward Paolo Banchero went No. 1 overall to the Orlando Magic and now has his name etched in history for being selected as the draft’s top pick.
Tari Eason, who transferred from Cincinnati to LSU after his freshman season, was drafted by the Rockets with the No. 17 overall selection in this year’s draft. He is also looking to have his name put in the record books for being an intricate part of the Rockets’ resurgence, which they hope will eventually lead them to an NBA championshipy.
“It was a product of my work,” Eason said when asked about his first-round selection. “I think I worked on a lot of aspects of my game. My shooting, my ball-handling, things like that. I’ve always had a pretty good defensive mindset just from my competitive nature from high school, even before then. I wasn’t heavily recruited, so I always carried that chip on my shoulder and that real edge that has helped me carry through.”
Eason, 21, has always had a work ethic that has matched his athletic ability. As those around him tell it, Eason’s desire and determination to improve have fueled him since he was a young kid.
“Tari is his hardest critic of himself,” said his mother, Teroya Eason, who attended the Rockets’ introductory press conference. “From the third grade until now, the game of basketball has been very serious for him. There is no joking about it; there is no roundabout way of doing it. He works with that chip on his shoulder. I am very proud of him.”
One person who helped Eason reach new heights was his former basketball coach at Garfield High School, who happens to know a few things about playing at the highest level. As it turns out, it was former Trail Blazers star Brandon Roy who coached Eason for three years.
Portland selected Roy with the No. 6 pick in the 2006 NBA draft, and he went on to win Rookie of the Year in his first season on his way to being chosen to two All-NBA teams and three All-Star honors.
“It was special,” Eason said about his time with Roy. “Any time you get to learn from a NBA All-Star, a person who was in the shoes I hope to be in, it’s just special. I tried to learn as much as I could from him and soak up the game and learned valuable lessons along the way.”
A valuable early lesson that put Eason to the test was during his first two years at Garfield, where he received very little playing time due to playing on two state playoff teams loaded with talent. When his team won it all in 2018, Eason did not play in the championship game.
“He was mad at me about the minutes back then,” Roy said during an interview with the Seattle Times about Eason’s sophomore season at Garfield. “He didn’t complain. He kept working and working, and he’s turned himself into one of the best players in the state. He really wants it. Every day in practice it’s a constant, ‘We’re not going to lose today; we’re not going to lose today!’ His mentality has never changed.”
Lack of playing time was not a problem during the 2019-20 season, as Eason led his team back to the state championship game against O’Dea High School. By coincidence, that opponent’s team featured Banchero. This time around, Roy had a special message for his superstar player.
“I told him, use your teammates, but we need you to be superman, too,” Roy said. Ultimately, Eason finished the game with 21 points and 14 rebounds and earned tournament MVP in a 69-44 blowout of O’Dea to secure the State 3A championship. He ended his senior season averaging 23 points, 8 rebounds, 3 steals, and 1.4 blocks per game.
Eason’s next stop was the Cincinnati Bearcats, where he played in only 23 games and made the All-ACC freshman team before entering the transfer portal and eventually winding up at LSU.
On most teams, Eason would have been a starter. But for the Tigers, who were also loaded with talent, Eason found another way to display his talent by thriving in his role as a sixth man. The versatile 6-foot-8 forward became the first player in SEC history to be named as Sixth Man of the Year and to the All-SEC First Team in the same season. He also was a semifinalist for the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year.
Watching Eason play on the court from the stands or at home is one thing. Having to battle him on the court is a different experience.
“How physical he is gives him the ability to guard multiple positions,” said new Rockets teammate Jabari Smith, who played in the SEC against Eason. “Everybody knows how well he moves. Especially guarding him, he gon’ get to the rim. So that’s just one thing you know, one thing on the scouting report. And as the years come, how hard a worker he is, everybody knows his jump shot is going to improve. So, sky’s the limit.”
Eason will get a chance soon to showcase how his abilities translate to the NBA, as he is expected to play for the Rockets’ summer league team in Las Vegas in early July. Assuming health, his first game will come against the Magic and a friendly foe in Banchero.
While most will have their eyes set on the Banchero-Smith matchup, Eason wants to show why Houston drafted a hard worker from Seattle.
“Nobody can stop Tari from getting to the rim whenever he wants,” said fellow Rockets rookie TyTy Washington, who (like Smith) competed against Eason last season in the SEC.
“He plays hard for the whole game on both sides of the ball,” Washington said. “One thing about Tari, he didn’t start. He came with the same mentality, like he never let that affect him. At the end of the day, he’s just a hooper. He just wants to go out there and win.”
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