The Rockets and forward Tari Eason failed to come to terms on a rookie scale extension ahead of the 5:00 pm Central time deadline on Monday, reports Shams Charania of ESPN (Twitter link).
Entering the day, Eason looked like one of the top remaining candidates to sign a rookie scale extension, along with Nuggets wing Christian Braun and Hawks guard Dyson Daniels. However, while Braun and Daniels completed deals worth $25MM annually, the Rockets and Eason were unable to find common ground “on multiple fronts,” according to Charania.
That wording suggests the two sides not have seen eye to eye on both years and dollars, or perhaps they disagreed over how the end of a potential extension would be structured in terms of options and/or guaranteed money.
According to Kelly Iko of Yahoo Sports (Twitter link), the Rockets and Eason’s camp had been “far apart in valuation” for weeks and weren’t able to bridge that gap despite an 11th hour push from the team, which was in position to work out an agreement with Eason after extending Kevin Durant over the weekend.
Eason is one of 12 players who didn’t sign rookie scale extensions prior to Monday’s deadline despite being eligible. Those players will now be on track for restricted free agency when their rookie scale contracts expire during the 2026 offseason.
Here’s that full list of players, sorted by their 2022 draft position and with their projected 2026 qualifying offers included in parentheses:
- Jaden Ivey, Pistons ($13,402,098)
- Bennedict Mathurin, Pacers ($12,256,222)
- Jeremy Sochan, Spurs ($9,615,393)
- Ousmane Dieng, Thunder ($9,132,437)
- Jalen Duren, Pistons ($8,966,188)
- Ochai Agbaji, Raptors ($8,879,483)
- Mark Williams, Suns ($8,774,590)
- Tari Eason, Rockets ($8,014,182)
- Dalen Terry, Bulls ($7,661,348)
- Malaki Branham, Wizards ($7,110,593)
- Walker Kessler, Jazz ($7,064,702)
- Peyton Watson, Nuggets ($6,534,714)
Those qualifying offers, which must be issued in order to make the player a restricted free agent, are subject to change depending on whether or not the player meets the starter criteria next season. A player drafted in the top 14 who falls short of the criteria would have a qualifying offer worth $8,774,590. A player who was drafted between No. 10 and No. 30 and achieves the starter criteria would see the value of his QO increase to $9,615,393.
A team that issues a qualifying offer to a potential restricted free agent gains the right of first refusal on that player and can match any offer sheet he signs with a rival suitor. A player who doesn’t get a QO next June would hit the market as an unrestricted free agent.
Magic forward Paolo Banchero, Thunder teammates Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams, Kings forward Keegan Murray, Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr., Trail Blazers guard Shaedon Sharpe, and Heat forward Nikola Jovic joined Braun and Daniels in signing rookie scale extensions, bringing the total for 2025 to nine. The details on those deals can be viewed here.