Tari Eason says he wants to start

his reward is them starting him thru the rest of the season and playoffs

and he should step up in the playoffs and Stone will base his offer on that

 

Hats off to Tari this year - guy clearly got better this offseason. It looks like he has more consistent arc on his shot this year and it's transforming his shooting game, he appears to play a bit more in control when driving to the hoop, and defensively he appears to be improving on his footwork and positioning. He always had a nose for the ball - but I see him out of position far less than I did in the past. I still wish he didn't commit bad closeout fouls(another technique/positioning thing), and the injury history continues to mute my enthusiasm of him but guy is a legit high level role player today when healthy.

This is going to sound wild, but he might also be our 4th best offensive player right now after KD, Alpi, and Reed given Amen's poor shot and Jabari's poor dribble.

 

If Tari could play 70 games a season he'd get Jabari's contract and actually be worth it.

 

Tari has been the missing piece in our lineup, Sengun/Jabari/KD/Tari/Amen is imo one of the best starting 5s in the league they just choke opponents on defense and Tari provides spacing from 3..

 

Tari's 3pt shooting continues to impress. Could it be not a fluke?

His defense, rebounding, and hustle are always there. But he has to be one of the worst decision makers with the ball. That's a shame because it wastes his good ball handling skill. Every time he makes a move with the ball, I hold my breath.

 

Tari’s self creation has been painful to watch lately but the 2% chance he randomly turns into Jalen Brown down the stretch and can take advantage of the weak defenders on him is about the only path I see to a chip this season.

I’d encourage him play free and live with it. It’s harder to make good decisions at full speed than walking.

 

What always baffles me is how soft he is around the rim. He's a pretty big guy with a long wingspan. He doesn't have the best verticality, but his other athletic traits are strong. He usually just goes up so soft. Doesn't try to bump guys off, rarely goes for the dunk. He'll get three rebounds in one possession and every one of them gets flipped up as kind of a weak-sauce layup. Currently shooting 65% from 0-3ft, which is worse than 6'2" Reed Sheppard.

 

Tari/Jabari/Durant should have a two dribble rule. If you're going to dribble more than two times then pass the ball to Sengun/Sheppard/Amen or shoot it.

 

Oh, yeah. When he makes the move with the ball, by the time I get to the third "No!", the mistake is often already made (i.e., "No no n---")

 

Tari goes to rim often such that his easy attempts get diluted by a lot of hard attempts. I'd prefer he make more of his close attempts, but getting as many rim attempts as he does is much more important than the only shooting 65% is a negative. I'd rather he be too aggressive and take some stupid shots than try to rein in the aggression and lose a good portion of his rim pressure.

I do think that his uncoordinated nature attacking the basket makes it harder for him to get a friendly whistle.

Long story short, the 2 shots he makes at the rim are more important than the 1 stupid shot he misses.

 

Bad decision-making and passing. Bad finishing around the rim. These are the real flaws in Tari’s game. But he’s better than Bari. If he can finish the year without any injuries I hope we lock him in long term. I can almost see the raucous damage he, DFS and Amen will do to other teams in the playoffs. Terror Triplets. Quadruplets if you add Okogie. Down right scary defensively.

 

He can shoot the three well, he can play great defense, he rebounds ok, but he can't dribble well, or create for others.

It should be him starting over Okogie though, and maybe over Bari.

DD

 

the bad % at the rim is overblown imo. yeah he was 2 for 9 from 2 yesterday but missed like 3-4 shots at the rim off of offensive rebounds that he was trying to patty cake tip in.

like, i just dont consider that bad. I value the hustle, grit and determination way more than the shot quality/percentage there.

His 3pt% has been elite, and while i dont think hes a 45+ guy, i think hes a 38+ guy because his mechanics look a lot better and a lot more consistent.

Hes an elite 3nD guy, and he is worth Jabari's 20m/yr even with the injury concerns. The guys is an absolute impact on the game monster.

 

I think people don’t understand Tari.

All of Tari’s positive impact comes from possession maxxing. His ORB + DRB + Def playmaking impact are combined among the highest in the NBA, which leads to his team getting more possessions than the other team.

This is very powerful, especially in the regular season. It’s why he is a highly valuable piece.

If you removed that component, he’s probably a neutral to slightly negative player. Like on any given single play, his sloppiness, scattershot execution and frequent mistakes offset his OK on ball defense and streaky shooting. But he gives you more plays than the other team, and that matters more.

 

It's not just the stupid shots. It's also the passing off when he dribbles into a crowd. HIs TOs per minute is on the same tier as Amen, by far more than any other non-ball handling playmaker.

 

Tari attempts shots around the rim that Reed would not. I wouldn't say he has complete tunnel vision, but being surrounded by three defenders wouldn't necessarily deter him from getting a shot up. Tari also lacks craftiness. His drives are straight line to the rim, no change in pace or moves that would freeze a defender. He's more likely to dribble himself into a set defense than an easy opportunity at the rim.

Trevor Ariza had similar height, build, athleticism and skill limitations. He also shot under 65% at the rim most seasons because of it.

 

He does that too. Tari has an aggressive game that causes him to get into bad situations that lead to forced shots and TOs. He's never been a low TO guy, but lately it's been bad. While I don't think the stupid shots at the rim really hurt that much because he's still making enough of them, the turnovers have gotten a little out of control.

Tari has high turnovers
His mid-range shot efficiency has disappeared. (not a strength before, but has gotten much worse after looking promising at the beginning of last season).
He doesn't make many passes.

Overall, I love that he gets a lot of attempts near the rim, he snags a lot of offensive rebounds, he gets steals, blocks some shots, while playing very good POA defense for a PF (though not as good as some guards do versus other guards). The 3 point shooting has been nice. Still waiting to see how much he regresses. I see the decision making (turnovers, some bad shots) as the biggest flaw to his game.

Overall, I think he's pulled away from JSJ and Okogie as overall players. If he's healthy, he should be starting.

 

This. Always this.

When Tari goes through that nightly desperation mode (too many shots, odd bursts to create his own shot , ignoring the simple swing, etc...), it's challenging to watch with confidence.

And, to his credit, those corner 3s from KD/Alpi's double-team have looked great. We have plenty of scorers and creators...Tari is best when he exceeds the effort/role of prime Trev or PJ.

 

He just needs a little time to get used to starting and also to realize he has a jumper now. Love seeing him in the Brooks role. Brings that tenacity and aggression we've been lacking.