Tari Eason, Rockets Reportedly Agree to New $81.5M Contract amid Free Agency, Updated Salary Cap

Tari Eason will remain with the Houston Rockets after agreeing to a five-year, $81.5 million contract:

Eason was set to be a restricted free agent but signed a new deal before testing the water. Houston now has limited room to add more players while in the second apron:

In the aftermath of Houston's season-ending playoff loss, Yahoo Sports' Kelly Iko reported on May 2 that the club was planning to re-engage Eason's camp in contract talks for a long-term deal this summer.

The Rockets' 2025-26 campaign ended on a down note. They lost in the first round of the playoffs to the Los Angeles Lakers, with Kevin Durant missing four of five games in the series due to injuries.

Houston entered the season with high expectations after acquiring Durant from the Phoenix Suns. Fred VanVleet tearing his ACL right before the start of training camp threw the projected rotation for a loop.

VanVleet opted to remain with the Rockets by opting into his $25 million player option for next season.

Eason stepped into the biggest role of his career to date for head coach Ime Udoka. The 25-year-old appeared in 60 games, making a career-high 34 starts during the regular season.

He averaged 10.5 points, 6.3 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game, along with shooting 35.8 percent from three-point range on a career-high 4.3 attempts per game.

There are still pieces in place for the Rockets to be a playoff team in the Western Conference next season, but they need to make some adjustments to get over the hump.

The ability to retain Eason is a good step for the Rockets given how valuable he has been to Udoka's rotation as both a starter or reserve off the bench.