One Team Reportedly Contacted Rockets About Tari Eason at Trade Deadline

Houston Rockets General Manager Rafael Stone entered the season ranked as one of the best front office executives in the league, based on a survey that graded the league's GMs. The survey assessed three different facets: trade history, draft history and free agency history.

However, the 2025-26 NBA season saw Stone fall out of favor with many, largely due to the Rockets' inability to replace Fred VanVleet, not to mention the botched Dorian Finney-Smith acquisition, as he essentially spent the entire season rehabbing an injury and trying to get himself back to the pre-injury version of himself -- a process that took much longer than the Rockets anticipated, by their own admission.

As it pertains to VanVleet, he suffered a season-ending knee injury before the season even started. Houston's brass opted to stand pat at the trade deadline altogether, which drew scrutiny even at the national level.

The Rockets clearly had needs, not just at the point guard position but they also needed outside shooting and another big man, following the season-ending injury to Steven Adams also. We'd heard that teams across the league registered interest in Rockets fourth-year forward Tari Eason.

The Chicago Bulls were reportedly engaged with the Rockets in multiple iterations of trade negotiations, involving Coby White and later Ayo Dosunmu. The Bulls wanted Eason.

As it turns out, they weren't the only ones. The Philadelphia 76ers were also interested in acquiring Eason from the Rockets, which isn't surprising, as the Sixers were led by Daryl Morey, the longtime General Manager of the Rockets prior to Stone taking on the role.

According to Adam Aaronson of Philly Voice, the Sixers sought to replace Jared McCain with a number of players, including Eason.

"In the end, the Sixers' attempts to backfill McCain's roster spot with a rotation-caliber piece were fruitless, but they did take place. A source with knowledge of the team's strategy entering the deadline indicated the focus was on adding cost-effective role players with multiple years of control.

The Sixers' efforts to land two other targets, Houston Rockets forward Tari Eason and Saddiq Bey of the New Orleans Pelicans, also did not lead to a deal (neither player was traded)."

The report comes on the heels of Morey's ouster from his post as Sixers President of Basketball Operations, which he'd held since 2020, when he left the Rockets. As it pertains to Eason, he's set to hit restricted free agency after the season, giving him an opportunity to find a team willing to sign him to an offer sheet. The Rockets will ultimately have the ability to match any offer that he receives, if they so desire.

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