By all stretches of the imagination, the Los Angeles Lakers lost the Game 4 battle against the Houston Rockets after a disappointing 115-96 result on Sunday. However, they may have quietly won the long-term war between these two sides. Credit is owed to Ime Udoka for that one.
The Rockets jumped all over the Lakers' lack of aggression and discipline in this one. Tari Eason led the way in that department, registering a team-high five steals in the win. Despite that, Udoka offered him a weird backhanded compliment after this game was over.
"You want guys to be solid and follow the gameplan, and all that, but certain guys do what they do, even though you're going to get burned every now and then. But, more often than not, he'll make the right play — get a deflection, get a steal. Tari being Tari, gotta let him do what he does."
On one hand, Udoka's message was ultimately complimentary of his young forward. On the other end of the equation, the subtext offered a confusingly bitter taste with that praise. Those comments are certainly worth not overlooking with Eason's free agency decision coming up this summer.
Tari Eason might be auditioning for his next team in Lakers-Rockets series
If Udoka is not consistently thrilled with how Eason needs to be managed as a part of his team, the Lakers certainly would be. Tari's archetype of forward is exactly what a future led by Luka Doncic needs in Los Angeles.
Eason is athletic, able to use that for slashing opportunities on offense and disruptive defensive plays on the other end. The Rockets forward also shot 35.8 percent from beyond the arc this season, largely brought down by a rough second-half stretch after a hot start.
It is worth noting that Eason is someone who has already been linked to the Lakers in the rumor mill during the 2025-26 season. It is doubly worth mentioning that paying up for Tari would be difficult for the Rockets given their current financial circumstances.
Houston does ultimately have the upper hand on retaining Eason. After failing to come to terms on a rookie-scale extension, Tari will hit free agency in the summer, but it will still be with the restricted designation.
If the combo of Udoka and Eason is not as smooth as it could be, and the Rockets would entertain the idea of moving on from their young forward, the Lakers should certainly swoop in for the heist. Rob Pelinka has gotten a close-up look at him throughout this series. If the front office in Los Angeles likes what they see by the end of this head-to-head, there may be a workable union here.
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