The Rockets Need Tari Eason's Offense Back Now

The Houston Rockets are currently 6-3 after the All-Star break, and the offense continues to show struggles and inefficiencies at certain points throughout their contests. While the Rockets are still third in the Western Conference with a 39-23 record, there is not a lot of room for error in the standings.

Houston has to make sure to at least win the games that are quite winnable, and that was not the case this past week thanks to a very disappointing loss to the injury-filled Golden State Warriors at home. While the Rockets bounced back on the second of that back-to-back against the Portland Trail Blazers, they were down for most of that game and went on a late run in the fourth to pull it out late.

The Rockets have had a somewhat favorable schedule after the All-Star break, but it’s about to get a whole lot harder for the next week with games against the Spurs, Raptors, and Nuggets coming up. Houston is in a crucial part of the season that will define what seed it will end up as, and the offense will need to improve and be more consistent against some of the better teams.

That, of course, begins with the starting five. There is no question about Kevin Durant’s MVP-level contributions, and a healthy Jabari Smith Jr. was effective for the Rockets before his ankle injury. Amen Thompson puts in complete performances on most nights. Alperen Şengün can put up big numbers like he did against the Blazers, and he needs to improve.

The player who really needs to step up now on offense is fourth-year forward Tari Eason. His defense and effort is always there, and before the month of March, Eason was contributing well in his role on offense too.

Eason Has Cooled Down

Mar 5, 2026; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets forward Tari Eason (17) and Golden State Warriors guard De'anthony Melton (8) battle for a rebound during the second quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-Imagn Images | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

Eason has developed into a good 3-point shooter, and he was on fire from the start of the year until March. Suddenly, he is going through a slump. The Rockets need him to get out of it quickly. With him being in the starting lineup and head coach Ime Udoka still hesitating to put Reed Sheppard in his place, it’s important for Eason to get back to his prior form.

The 24-year-old has been going through a stretch of really poor offensive shot-making that extended into the late parts of February. Eason has scored 10 points just once since Feb. 23. That is not enough considering he is getting starter minutes.

In three games in March, Eason is averaging just 7.7 points per game on 37% shooting from the field and a miserable 9% from three. Eason has made just one 3-pointer this month. All shooters go through slumps, and it’s imperative for Eason to get out of it. He was 4/11 overall against the Wizards, and 4/12 against the Heat.

The 6-foot-8, 215-pound forward was initially shooting well above 40% from three until this slump, and that number is still at 41%, which shows how much of a heater he was on. Eason was one of the best corner 3-point shooters in the league around 56%, but that number has dropped to 50%.

He used to be automatic from the corner pocket, and it significantly boosts the Rockets offense when he knocks those down. Eason is in the right position, but the shots are just not going down. His best game of the season came against the Oklahoma City Thunder on the road on Feb. 7. Eason scored a season high 26 and knocked down five 3-pointers on 10/22 shooting from the field.

It just hasn’t clicked since then. He still averaged 10 PPG in February, but it was a special January for Eason. The LSU product averaged 13 PPG and 47% from three in those 10 games. Eason was consistent all year from three, and shot well over 40% and he also averaged more than 10 PPG every month until now.

Eason currently averages 11.2 points, 6.3 rebounds, two assists, one steal, and 44% shooting. He’s started 26 of the 40 games he’s played, and the conversations about Sheppard coming into the starting five will continue to get louder unless he finds his shooting stroke again.