Rockets' Tari Eason to have season-ending surgery on left leg

Houston Rockets forward Tari Eason will have season-ending surgery on his left leg Monday, coach Ime Udoka said Saturday night.

Eason, who has been out since Jan. 1 and has appeared in only 22 games this season, has been dealing with a benign growth on his left shin bone.

"He had obviously been going through some things through the year and had a benign growth on the shin bone, the tibia I think," Udoka said, according to the Houston Chronicle. "Took that blow early in the season. Flared up. He played through it with some pain. Never had a chance of fracturing. It was a pain tolerance thing. Once the pain got too high, he shut it down."

Udoka said the growth was a preexisting condition and something Eason has had "for a while."

"We thought rest and rehab, he could get over it that way, but every time he ramped up, the pain came right back. After seeing all the specialists and decision-makers, came to the decision that it's best to have surgery Monday."

Udoka said Eason will have a bone graft on the shin and be out four months.

Selected No. 17 overall by the Rockets in last year's draft, Eason had a promising rookie season -- averaging 9.3 points, 6 rebounds and 1.2 steals. In the 480 minutes Eason played this season, the Rockets outscored opponents by more than nine points per 100 possessions.