Rockets’ Tari Eason Discusses Leg Injury, Rehab

Following a solid rookie season, Tari Eason fell victim to the injury bug last season. Eason appeared in just 22 games, none after January 1st.

The Rockets forward underwent surgery to treat a benign growth on his lower leg, with the procedure involving “excising and bone grafting the lesion along with inserting an intramedullary rod in his tibia to help accelerate healing.”

Eason told The Athletic’s Kelly Iko it was all a new experience for him.

“It was a trying time,” Eason said. “I’ve never really dealt with a major injury or anything that has kept me out of basketball for a long period of time. It was tough on me mentally, but I had the right people in my corner, giving me good, positive energy and praying. That helped me stay grounded through the process.”

Indeed, Eason appeared in all 82 games in his rookie campaign, averaging 9.3 points, 6.0 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 1.2 steals in 21.5 minutes per night. The rehab process has been arduous but he’s confident he’ll be ready to reestablish himself in training camp.

“I feel good. I feel like I’m close to 100 percent. You’ve seen me jumping, running, dunking,” he said. “I feel pretty normal, to be honest. It’s really about getting all the movements back to where they were.”

Eason was the 17th pick of the 2022 draft and projects as a key reserve on the much-improved Rockets. He’ll be eligible for a rookie scale extension next offseason.

Here’s more from his interview with Iko:

  • Eason said he felt soreness in his shin before the season began: “I’d say right before training camp in the Bahamas during the team trip. Working out, I would notice that my shin would be really, really sore. I thought that was maybe through lack of treatment or stretching, things like that. I put more time in the training room and just ignored it. But definitely around training camp, because every time I jumped, I was in pain.”
  • The injury took a mental toll on him: “It was weird going to games and not suiting up, wearing regular clothes. It was sad. There was a point where I really was sad, a low point. I didn’t know what was going to happen, I didn’t know what the solution was. That thought of not knowing is uncomfortable.”
  • On how he views next season: “I don’t have too many words on that. I’m going to let my game do the talking. A lot of stuff has been said, a lot of ways people view me, I hear it all. But I’m not here to prove anything.”

Olympic Notes: Murray, Schroder, Rankings

There’s been a lot of speculation regarding Jamal Murray‘s spotty minutes for Team Canada, according to Michael Grange of Sportsnet.

After attending to a personal matter, Murray didn’t dress for Canada’s game against France and played just seven minutes against Puerto Rico. It’s anticipated he’ll play about twice as much during Canada’s scrimmage against Brazil on Wednesday.

The slow ramp-up has led to rumors that Murray is dealing with an injury or that some other factor is limiting his participation. Team Canada achieved a World Cup bronze last summer without Murray, so it remains to be seen how he’ll impact this year’s squad.

  • While LeBron James has been named a flag bearer for the United States and Giannis Antetokounmpo will carry the Greek flag, another NBA player will have that honor for Germany. Dennis Schröder and Anna-Maria Wagner (judo) will carry the German flag during the opening ceremonies on Friday in Paris, according to a tweet from the German Olympic Committee.
  • It’s no surprise that Team USA and Team Canada are ranked No. 1 and No. 2 in USA Today’s Jeff Zillgitt’s Olympic men’s basketball power rankings. France, Germany and Serbia round out the top five in the 12-team event.
  • In case you missed it, Team USA coach Steve Kerr said there are no plans to replace Kevin Durant on the roster. Durant didn’t play in any exhibition games due to a calf strain.

Heat Notes: Summer League, Christoper, Larsson, Ware

The Heat won the Las Vegas Summer League championship with a dramatic 120-118 overtime victory over the Grizzlies on Monday. The Heat won all six of their games in Vegas, plus the last two in the California Classic. Second-rounder Pelle Larsson made the game-winning shot.

“By the end of this (Monday), a lot of us coaches, we were really hoping that it wouldn’t be over,” Summer League coach Dan Bisaccio said, per Anthony Chiang of the Miami Herald. “Obviously, yes the priority is we want to win the championship. But at the same time, this journey that we were on with this group was amazing. It was something truly special.

“I understand this is summer league. But the fact that these guys came together as a group like that, they kind of put aside their individual goals for the better of the team. I just think that speaks volumes to who they are and what their character is.”

We have more on the Heat:

  • The team has 14 players on standard contracts and don’t plan to add a 15th player until later in the regular season due to tax apron concerns. They also have all three two-way slots filled. Those two-way spots could change — they don’t count against the cap — in the aftermath of Summer League performances. Josh Christopher, Caleb Daniels, Cole Swider and Alondes Williams — all of whom are free agents at the moment — made compelling cases to receive a two-way deal or at least a training camp invite, according to Chiang.
  • Speaking of Christopher, he was named Most Valuable Player of the championship game, Chiang tweets. The former first-round pick scored a team-high 24 points, including six 3-pointers. He also added four rebounds, one assist, three steals and two blocks. “I think this Heat culture thing just brought the best out of me. I don’t think I’ve had a series of games better than this in my life, honestly,” Christopher said.
  • Larsson signed a three-year contract prior to summer competition and impressed the coaches in a number of ways, according to Ira Winderman of the South Florida Sun Sentinel. “He’s a tireless worker,” Bisaccio said. “He’s a great leader on the floor and he’s just got a really good disposition and he’s a man of a craft, is the word I’m looking for. Behind the scenes, he’s always trying to work on his shot. He’s always trying to find that new angle that he can give you, that extra detail on a pick and roll.”
  • First-round pick Kel’el Ware, Jaime Jaquez and Keshad Johnson earned A grades on Winderman’s Summer League report card.

International Notes: Jokubaitis, Hall, Harper

Rokas Jokubaitis has a clear path to sign with Maccabi Tel Aviv now that his former team, Barcelona, has announced that it has officially parted ways with him.

Jokubaitis played for the Knicks during the Summer League and is reportedly in “advanced talks” with the Israeli team. According to Donatas Urbonas of BasketNews.com (Twitter link), Maccabi is very likely Jokubaitis’ destination.

The Lithuanian point guard spent the past three years with Barcelona, where he averaged 5.3 points and 2.8 assists per game last season.

Jokubaitis appeared in five games for New York in Las Vegas, averaging 9.8 points, 1.8 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.2 steals in 19.1 minutes per contest.

We have more international news:

  • Former NBA forward Donta Hall has signed a two-year deal with Spain’s Baskonia, according to a press release from the club. The American big man most recently played for Monaco. He averaged 4.9 points and 3.5 rebounds in 13.4 minutes over 38 games in EuroLeague action last season. Hall has made 22 NBA regular season appearances with Detroit, Brooklyn and Orlando.
  • Former NBA point guard Jared Harper has signed a two-year contract with Hapoel Jerusalem, according to a team press release. Harper, who went undrafted in 2019 and made a total of 16 appearances for the Suns, Knicks and Pelicans, has played for Valencia in the EuroLeague for the past two years. In 53 EuroLeague appearances, he averaged 9.3 points and 3.0 assists in 17 minutes per game.
  • In case you missed it, Mavericks second-round pick Melvin Ajinca will play for France’s ASVEL Basket next season.

New York Notes: Johnson, Barrett, Kolek, Payne, Achiuwa

Now that Mikal Bridges has been dealt, which Nets player currently has the most trade value? Cameron Johnson could fit that description, according to Brian Lewis of the New York Post. Johnson is entering the second year of a four-year, $94.5MM contract. Johnson averaged 13.4 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game last season, despite battling numerous injuries. He’s a career 39.2% 3-point shooter and has good size for a wing.

The Kings, Magic and Lakers are among the teams who may have interest in the Nets sharpshooter, Lewis adds.

We have more from the New York teams:

  • The Nets have hired Andre Barrett as a scout, HoopsHype’s Michael Scotto tweets. Barrett worked four years for the league after a playing career in the NBA and a few foreign stops. He had been the scouting director for the now-defunct G League Ignite.
  • Second-round pick Tyler Kolek is eager to learn from Knicks starting point guard Jalen Brunson, the rookie out of Marquette told The Athletic’s Fred Katz. “It’s just playing under control, picking angles, getting to the line,” Kolek said. “That’s a really big thing. (Brunson) does a great job at getting to the line. I really gotta learn that. In the NBA, it’s so different. … You can over-exaggerate things, just little tricks of the trade you can pick up from older guys.” Kolek averaged 9.6 points and 7.0 assists in 27.2 minutes per contest for the Knicks’ Summer League team.
  • Despite the free agent addition of Cameron Payne, Kolek is currently viewed as the backup point guard ahead of Payne, according to Ian Begley of SNY TV. However, unless coach Tom Thibodeau goes with a 10-man rotation, Kolek may not get regular minutes. Miles McBride still projects to be in the rotation with Donte DiVincenzo and Josh Hart also coming off the bench.
  • The main backup big for the Knicks is still a question mark but they remain in regular contact with one of their free agents, Precious Achiuwa, Begley writes. However, Achiuwa has drawn interest from several other teams.

Sixers Notes: George, Maxey, Embiid, McCain

Speaking to reporters at his introductory press conference on Tuesday, new Sixers forward Paul George expressed gratitude to the Clippers for the “amazing” time he spent with his hometown team and said he had “no ill will” toward the franchise over how his five-year run ended, according to Tim Bontemps of ESPN. George believes “everything just aligned perfectly” for him to make the move to Philadelphia this summer.

“Where they’re at and where they’re trying to go and where I’m trying to get to, as well. I think we got a real legitimate shot,” George said of the Sixers’ ability to contend in the East. “I’ve always been a fan of Tyrese (Maxey) and Joel (Embiid) from afar, and Joel has secretly been one of my closest All-Star Game friends. And so, it kind of felt inevitable that at some point we would link up and be teammates. So, I’m all-in. My family’s here all-in, and I’m excited, and looking forward to this next opportunity.”

Acknowledging that injuries to himself and his teammates were a factor in the Clippers ultimately not making the sort of deep playoff runs they’d hoped for, George expressed optimism that sharing the workload with Maxey and Embiid in Philadelphia will help all three stars stay healthier.

“I think just taking the pressure off Joel,” George said. “I think I can kind of help him get through a season healthy. And again, it’s just not putting so much pressure on him. Regardless of how good you feel, I think pressure causes a lot of injuries as well, and you think you have to get overplayed, you have to touch every possession, that kind of just wears you down, especially for how physical he is. So that’s the key. Everybody do their part, make sure we’re working on our bodies, and that we don’t just put that pressure on one individual to go out and win games for us.”

Here’s more out of Philadelphia:

  • The Sixers also held a press conference on Tuesday in honor of Maxey’s new five-year, maximum-salary deal. The guard could have pushed to receive that contract a year ago but was willing to wait until this summer to allow Philadelphia to maximize its cap room, earning praise from president of basketball operations Daryl Morey for his patience. “This offseason wouldn’t be possible without him,” Morey said, per Jeff Neiburg of The Philadelphia Inquirer. “He was very clearly on his way to being what he has become, an All-Star, one of the great future stars of this league, and by being patient he allowed us to put this offseason together, to really put us in this position to be one of the very few legitimate contenders in the league this year.”
  • Speaking to David Marchese of The New York Times on an episode of The Interview podcast, Embiid suggested he believes he could be in the conversation for the NBA’s greatest player of all time if not for the injuries that have cost him so many games over the years. “I think I’m that talented. Obviously you need to win championships, and to win championships you need other guys,” Embiid said. “… If you think about it, the thing that stopped me all these years is just freak injuries. Every single playoffs, regular season, people falling on my knee or breaking my face — twice. It’s always freak injuries at the wrong time.”
  • It was a tough Summer League experience for first-round pick Jared McCain in both Salt Lake City and Las Vegas, as he made just 28.6% of his shots from the field in his eight games for the Sixers, including 25.5% of his three-point tries. As Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer relays, McCain is determined to view the summer as a learning experience and not to let his July struggles shake his confidence. “One of my favorite quotes is, ‘Whatever you’re going through, you are growing through,'” McCain said. “So whatever I’m doing in life, it’s always a learning lesson from it.”

Sam Hauser Signs Four-Year Extension With Celtics

JULY 23: The Celtics have officially signed Hauser to his extension, the team confirmed in a press release.

“You can count on Sam. He comes to work every single day with the right mindset and attitude,” president of basketball operations Brad Stevens said in a statement. “His shooting gets most of the attention – but his feel for the game, defensive versatility, and his consistency as a teammate have allowed him to impact our team in the biggest of moments. We are excited Sam has decided to extend his contract with the Celtics.”


JULY 21: The Celtics have reached an agreement with Sam Hauser on a four-year, $45MM contract extension, agent Jason Glushon tells ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski (Twitter link).

It’s a significant raise for the 26-year-old forward, who will make a little more than $2MM for the upcoming season. Boston picked up its team option on Hauser’s contract in late June with the intention of signing him to an extension.

There are no options in the final year so the deal is fully guaranteed, a league source tells Adam Himmelsbach of The Boston Globe (Twitter link).

Hauser is coming off a career-best season in which he played an important role off the bench in the Celtics’ run to an NBA title. He appeared in 79 games, making 13 starts and averaging 9.0 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.0 assists per night, with a .446/.424/.895 shooting line.

Hauser has become one of the NBA’s top three-point shooters since joining the Celtics on a two-way deal after going undrafted out of Virginia in 2021. He spent most of his first season in the G League, then signed a standard contract in the summer of 2022.

Hauser’s extension is the third of the summer for Boston, which also reached long-term deals with Jayson Tatum and Derrick White. In addition, the team has signed Jaylen Brown, Jrue Holiday and Kristaps Porzingis to extensions within the past year.

In a full story on the extension, Wojnarowski notes that the Celtics now have a projected $225MM payroll for the 2025/26 season, which would result in a $210MM tax penalty and create the largest combined salary/tax bill in league history. They are also in position to exceed the second apron for each of the next two seasons, which will prevent them from being able to trade their first-round picks for 2032 and 2033.

The franchise could be in new hands by then, as the majority ownership group announced earlier this month that it plans to sell its shares in the team.

Eastern Notes: Valanciunas, Raptors, Pistons, Langdon

Veteran center Jonas Valanciunas signed a three-year contract with the Wizards worth in excess of $30MM earlier this month, but the hosts of ESPN’s Hoop Collective podcast aren’t expecting the big man to play out that entire deal in D.C. (YouTube link; hat tip to HoopsHype). In fact, Brian Windhorst and Tim Bontemps suggested they wouldn’t be surprised if Valanciunas is playing elsewhere before the 2024/25 season is over.

“Do we think Jonas Valanciunas will be on offer from the Wizards midway through the season?” Windhorst said. “I wouldn’t rule out Jonas Valanciunas eventually ending up a Laker this year, that’s all I’m going to say.”

“100%,” Bontemps replied. “Or somewhere else besides Washington.”

While Valanciunas figures to slot in as the Wizards’ starting center this fall, the team remains firmly in a rebuilding stage, so if it can get draft assets in exchange for the 32-year-old at next year’s trade deadline, it wouldn’t be shocking to see him on the move in early 2025.

As Windhorst alluded to, Valanciunas was one of the players who was reportedly on LeBron James‘ wish list of “impact” free agents this summer and will likely be more attainable on the trade market that some of the other names on that list (such as James Harden, Klay Thompson, or DeMar DeRozan). So if Valanciunas is available, the Lakers are certainly among the teams who might kick the tires.

Here’s more from around the Eastern Conference:

  • Blake Murphy of Sportsnet.ca explains how the Raptors made good use of their leverage in their standoff with Sasha Vezenkov and details how their buyout agreement with Vezenkov creates newfound financial flexibility for the team. While Toronto now has about $11.3MM in wiggle room below the luxury tax line, the club may opt to maintain that flexibility in case trade opportunities arise in the fall or during the season, Murphy writes.
  • In a mailbag for The Athletic, James L. Edwards III considers whether the Pistons still have moves to make this offseason, suggesting that he wouldn’t be surprised if the team explores the idea of signing one of the notable guards or wings left on the free agent market, such as Tyus Jones, Markelle Fultz, or Reggie Bullock. Edwards also weighs the odds of a Jaden Ivey trade, noting that significant minutes could be harder than ever to come by for the former lottery pick if Detroit is committed to playing Malik Beasley and Tim Hardaway Jr. regularly.
  • Keith Langlois of Pistons.com shares his early impressions of the Pistons‘ new president of basketball operations, exploring what Trajan Langdon‘s moves during his first two months on the job say about his roster-building approach. As Langlois writes, Langdon’s decisions have made it clear he’s not necessarily looking to get Detroit back to the playoffs as quickly as possible.

Checking In On Two-Way Contract Slots Around NBA

NBA teams are each permitted to carry up to three players on two-way contracts, which means at any given time there could be a maximum of 90 players on two-way deals around the league.

[RELATED: Hoops Rumors Glossary: Two-Way Contract]

Of course, while it’s common for the NBA-wide total to hover at or near 90 for much of the regular season, we’re only 23 days into the 2024/25 league year, so many teams have yet to fill all of their two-way slots.

Still, some clubs haven’t wasted much time in signing players to two-way contracts. At the moment, as our tracker shows, 62 of the 90 slots around the league are occupied and two more are spoken for — Spencer Jones has reportedly agreed to a deal with Denver and Jack McVeigh is reportedly signing with Houston.

We’re still about three months away from the 2024/25 regular season tipping off, and since two-way deals don’t affect a team’s cap situation, it won’t be a surprise if many teams rotate players in and out of those roster spots up until the season begins (and after that). But for the time being, there are just 26 open two-way slots across the league. Here’s the breakdown:


Teams with multiple open two-way slots

  • Brooklyn Nets (2)
  • Cleveland Cavaliers (3)
  • Indiana Pacers (3)
  • Los Angeles Clippers (2)
  • New York Knicks (2)
  • Orlando Magic (2)
  • San Antonio Spurs (2)

Some of these spots may already be spoken for. For instance, the Cavaliers (Emoni Bates), Pacers (Oscar Tshiebwe and Quenton Jackson) and Knicks (Jacob Toppin) still have two-way qualifying offers on the table to restricted free agents. If those players eventually accept those offers, they’ll be back with their respective clubs on new two-way contracts.

Some of these clubs – including the Pacers with Tristen Newton and Enrique Freeman, the Knicks with Kevin McCullar, and the Spurs with Harrison Ingram – also have second-round picks from this year’s draft who look like logical candidates for two-way spots.

Still, with multiple openings, many of these teams are in position to identify Summer League standouts whom they want to bring to training camp. They could offer them two-way deals or could try to sign several players to Exhibit 10 contracts and create an open competition for two-way spots this fall.

Teams with one open two-way slot

  • Atlanta Hawks
  • Boston Celtics
  • Charlotte Hornets
  • Dallas Mavericks
  • Detroit Pistons
  • New Orleans Pelicans
  • Phoenix Suns
  • Portland Trail Blazers
  • Utah Jazz
  • Washington Wizards

As with some of the teams above, there are a few cases here where there’s one obvious candidate to fill these two-way openings. It would make sense, for example, for the Celtics to sign No. 54 overall pick Anton Watson to a two-way deal.

That’s not the case for all of these openings though, so agents whose clients are seeking an 18-man roster spot will likely reach out to these clubs to see how they intend to use their third two-way contract slot.

Teams with no two-way openings

  • Chicago Bulls
  • Denver Nuggets
  • Golden State Warriors
  • Houston Rockets
  • Los Angeles Lakers
  • Memphis Grizzlies
  • Miami Heat
  • Milwaukee Bucks
  • Minnesota Timberwolves
  • Oklahoma City Thunder
  • Philadelphia 76ers
  • Sacramento Kings
  • Toronto Raptors

In theory, these 13 teams are good to go for training camp. In actuality, I could see half of them making two-way changes by the start of October. The Heat, for instance, had some non-roster players on their Summer League team outperform their two-way players and have some decisions to make on which three players they want to bring to camp on two-way deals.

Contract Details: Mobley, K. Johnson, Bona, Matkovic

The five-year, maximum-salary contract extension that Evan Mobley signed with the Cavaliers features multiple levels of Rose Rule incentives, ESPN’s Brian Windhorst said during the last episode of The Hoop Collective podcast (YouTube link).

According to Windhorst, Mobley’s deal will begin at 27% of the 2025/26 cap if he makes the All-NBA Third Team next season. If he makes the All-NBA First or Second Team or wins Defensive Player of the Year, the starting salary in the extension would be 30% of the ’25/26 cap.

Assuming Mobley isn’t named Defensive Player of the Year and doesn’t make an All-NBA team, his deal would begin at the standard max for a player with four years of NBA experience (25% of the cap).

Here are more details on a few contracts recently signed around the NBA:

  • Keon Johnson‘s two-year, minimum-salary deal with the Nets is partially guaranteed for $250K in 2024/25, Hoops Rumors has learned. That partial guarantee will increase to $700K if Johnson remains under contract through the first day of the regular season. The second year is a team option that would be partially guaranteed for $271,614 if it’s exercised.
  • The four-year contract that No. 41 overall pick Adem Bona signed with the Sixers is worth the minimum across all four seasons and is only fully guaranteed in year one, Hoops Rumors has learned. Bona’s second-year salary of $1,955,377 is just 50% guaranteed, while his third- and fourth-year salaries are non-guaranteed. The fourth year is also a team option.
  • Karlo Matkovic‘s three-year contract with the Pelicans is worth $5.65MM and is fully guaranteed for the first two seasons, with a third-year team option, tweets Michael Scotto of HoopsHype. The terms reported by Scotto suggest that New Orleans used the second-round exception to give Matkovic a salary a little above the rookie minimum in 2024/25, with minimum salaries in years two and three.