Tari Eason: 2022 NBA Draft Scouting Report
A productive two-way athlete, Eason has a wide range of outcomes for his career, all tied to his half-court offensive production
Athletic wings are coveted in today’s NBA. Athletic wings who can score it at a high rate are just as rare and the wave of the future, no matter how raw they are. LSU athlete Tari Eason may not have the most refined game at this stage in his career, but he is impactful in the minutes he plays on both ends and fills up the stat sheet in unique ways.
Per 100 possessions, Eason averaged a whopping 39.4 points, 15.4 rebounds and shot 36% from 3 on 5.5 attempts. The only players in NBA history to do that? Joel Embiid this year and DeMarcus Cousins in 2016-17. Eason combined those 39.4 points per 100 possessions with 4.5 steals and 2.5 blocks. Nobody has ever met that threshold in NBA history.
Eason tickles the fancies of both analytics fiends and highlight junkies. While his rare combinations of statistical impact are notable, he’s also a very fluid athlete with a 7’0” wingspan, a propensity to play in transition, small handling prowess and terrorizing defensive impact based on those natural tools. In a league built upon multi-positional, switchable defenders, Eason checks every box that fans look for on that end.
While we have a first-round grade on Eason, there are some severe warning labels on the outside of the bottle. We’re willing to read the fine print and make sure anyone taking the “Eason top ten” pills is at least aware of the cautions.
First and foremost, Eason has struggled with the consistency of his shot. 16 games into the season, he was shooting under 28% from 3 with uncomfortable form off to the right side of his face, hesitating on most looks and being marooned on an island from deep. The final 17 games saw a tremendous amount of growth — 43% from 3 — but it’s hard to know which version of Eason to trust, how much that shooting sample is legitimate and how fixable the remaining mechanical flaws are.
The shot is meant to accompany a robust driving game of Eason’s, which is currently 95% right-hand-dominant. The LSU offense was designed around getting Eason touches going downhill to his right, and he was athletic and strong enough to get to his spots and create contact for free throws. Touch, counter moves or mid-range pull-ups were not there for him.
Nor was a left hand. Defenders who cut him off and forced him back to his left found success. The lack of diversity in his moves, and how overly reliant he was on his right, is a handicapper in his scoring off the bounce.
Guys like Eason are tough offensive scouts: they’re incredibly productive while also having a strain on your eyes. Can what we’re seeing work at an NBA level despite the clear limitations and skill levels at play? Scoring in an efficient way without a ton of diversity to the game is difficult to peg.
That said, Eason’s floor is high enough athletically and defensively to wade through many of these concerns. He isn’t a Herb Jones-like multi-positional lockdown guy, but he’s great off-ball, long enough to guard multiple spots and has all the athletic tools to continue to develop.
While Eason’s athleticism and defensive impact are above-average, they aren’t elite enough to mitigate if he were struggling on the offensive end. LSU clearly catered to Eason — and did so for a player in a bench role. They got the most out of Eason offensively, developed his game and we saw a great deal of confidence gained by the end of their season.
Still, there’s something that doesn’t sit right with Eason as a lottery prospect. Not starting — and playing fewer than 26 minutes a game — speaks to the lack of dynamic game he presents. If Eason could be more of an offensive focal point, the scoring-starved Tigers would have easily turned the reigns over to him more and played him longer minutes.
Yet Eason’s game doesn’t translate very well to that of a role player in the modern NBA. His spot-up shooting is inconsistent, feel even lower and versatility on the offensive end leaving a lot to be desired.