Tari Eason
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Houston Rockets point guard Tari Eason.
Houston Rockets power forward Tari Eason is looking for protection from the state of California after he claims his ex-girlfriend destroyed almost $100,000 worth of his clothing with bleach following an argument.
Eason, 25, claims Marilyn Maritza Melo Rodriguez, 32, went back to his rental following an argument between the 2 and poured liquid bleach over $92,000 worth of his designer clothes.
From TMZ: “Tari claims one of Marilyn’s friends called him to ‘tell me that she would break both of my legs and kill me’ … alleged threats he said made him fear for his life. Tari is asking a judge to order Marilyn to stay away from him, his home, his work, his car … and any arena in California where the Rockets might play.”
According to Eason, Rodriguez also punched him in the face after a ride home — after which he says she doubled back to his place to ruin his clothes.
Eason, a 2022 1st-round pick (No. 17 overall), signed a 5-year, $81.45 million contract extension July 29 that includes a player option for the 2030-21 season worth $18.55 million. Eason’s current contract will bring his career earnings to approximately $98 million.
Eason One of NBA’s Most Valuable Bench Players
Eason, 6-foot-8 and 215 pounds, was an All-AAC pick at Cincinnati as a freshman, then an All-SEC pick at LSU as a sophomore — when he was also SEC Sixth Man of the Year and averaged 16.9 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 1.9 steals.
Eason made the NBA All-Rookie Team in 2023 with 9.3 points and 6.0 rebounds while he played in all 82 regular-season games — followed by just 22 games in 2023-24 due to a lower-leg stress contusion that required surgery.
The last 2 seasons have represented a bounce-back for Eason, who has averaged double-digits each year while almost exclusively coming off the bench — a role in wich he has still averaged 25 minutes per game.
Who is Tari Eason’s Ex Marilyn Melo Rodriguez?
Rodriguez is a fashion influencer/model with 7715,000 followers on her official Instagram account. She posted a roll of pictures to Instagram from a Rockets preseason win over the Utah Jazz in Houston on October 8.
She’s also a model for the prestigious Wilhelmina Modeling agency out of Miami
Comparatively, Eason has just 87,500 followers on Instagram.
His last post came on July 9 — the day he signed his new contract with the Rockets — and contained just 2 shrugging emojis and a roll of pictures.