Rockets Tari Eason Rises In Latest Kia Rookie Ladder

After an impressive week against the Suns and Warriors, Houston Rockets rookie Tari Eason moved up one spot on the latest Kia Rookie Ladder.

HOUSTON — NBA.com released its weekly Kia Rookie Ladder Tuesday morning. The list features a ranking of the top 10 first-year prospects, evaluating their performances from the previous week.

Houston Rockets rookie Jabari Smith Jr. retained the fourth spot from last week's rankings. But Tari Eason reached No. 5 after finishing last week at six.   

Eason helped the Rockets record a 122-121 victory over the Phoenix Suns Friday night. He finished with nine points and five rebounds in 19 minutes. Saturday night, Eason recorded a career-best 19 points in a loss to the Golden State Warriors. He also added eight rebounds and three assists.  

The rookie forward from LSU is averaging 8.8 points and 5.4 rebounds through the first 24 games.

"Eason’s role is limited by the staff’s focus on developing teammates and he ranks seventh among Rockets in minutes played. But he’s a double-double guy pro-rated to 36 minutes. Since 1984, only eight rookies totaled more offensive rebounds and steals through 20 games than Eason." — Steve Aschburner

Bennedict Mathurin of the Indiana Pacers ranks ahead of all rookies by taking the top spot for the second consecutive week. He averaged 18.3 points and 4.5 rebounds in four games.

Orlando Magic's Paolo Banchero and Detroit Pistons Jaden Ivey came in at No. 2 and No. 3 on NBA.com's latest rookie ladder.

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