Will Wade’s LSU track record is getting a fresh boost this offseason, and it comes from two of the biggest names he coached in Baton Rouge. Tari Eason and Naz Reid have both landed in strong spots in the NBA, giving LSU a pair of success stories that can still resonate with recruits and future pros.
Reid was the first LSU player Wade sent to the league. He went undrafted, but that never stopped him from carving out a real NBA career.
Now 26, he’s turned that one season with the Tigers into a seven-year run that is still climbing. He’s been in the Sixth Man of the Year conversation for the last three seasons and won the award three years ago.
This summer brought another step forward. After the trade of Julius Randle, Reid is set to move into the starting lineup.
He’s also entering the second year of a five-year, $125 million extension he signed last year. For an undrafted player, that’s a major success story.
Eason’s path looked different, but the end result has been just as encouraging. He spent one season at Cincinnati, where he showed flashes but still looked more like a future second-round pick. Then he transferred to LSU, and Wade helped push him all the way to No. 17 overall in the 2022 draft.
In his lone season with the Tigers, Eason averaged 16.9 points, 6.6 rebounds, 1.0 assists, 1.9 steals and 1.1 blocks while shooting 52.1/35.9/80.3. Even then, the defensive edge was obvious, and there was enough promise in the three-point shot to hint at more.
That’s basically the player he’s become in the NBA. Eason is a real weapon on defense and can get rolling from deep, even if the jumper isn’t always steady. The Houston Rockets clearly value that profile, which is why they gave him a fully guaranteed five-year, $81.5 million deal on Wednesday.
He may have been able to find more money elsewhere in total, but for a player who has dealt with injury issues early in his career, locking in that kind of guaranteed money is a big win.
Wade and Eason remain close, too. Wade even visited Eason when Houston played the New Orleans Pelicans last season.
For LSU, that matters. Current recruits can look at Reid and Eason and see exactly what the program wants to produce: players who stick in the league, fit what teams need and keep rising once they get there. Wade gets to claim at least part of that development as his own.
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LSU Freshman Is Already Creating Buzz As Tigers Next Star Lineman
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What has stood out so far is the combination of size, physicality and work ethic, the kind of early impression that can accelerate a players path before he has even played a snap. Anderson is part of a highly regarded defensive line recruiting class, and LSU will be watching closely to see how quickly that promise turns into real impact up front. [Read more 🡒]