03/05/26 12:54:00
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03/05 12:52 CST Celtics' Jayson Tatum listed as 'questionable,' on verge of
return 9 months after Achilles surgery
Celtics' Jayson Tatum listed as 'questionable,' on verge of return 9 months
after Achilles surgery
By KYLE HIGHTOWER
AP Sports Writer
BOSTON (AP) --- Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum is on the verge of making a
return to NBA action nine months after rupturing his right Achilles tendon
injury during last season's playoffs.
Tatum was listed as questionable on the Celtics' injury report on Thursday
ahead of the team's home matchup with the Dallas Mavericks on Friday night.
It is the first time this season he hasn't been listed as sidelined and
undergoing rehabilitation for the injury he suffered during Game 4 of Boston's
Eastern Conference semifinal loss to the New York Knicks last May.
Celtics president of basketball operations Brad Stevens has said that Tatum
wouldn't be cleared to return until he was ready to play both physically and
mentally. That time may have arrived.
Tatum also has previously indicated that his return to the court would be a
home game. The Celtics (41-21) have 20 games remaining in the regular season,
including 11 at TD Garden. Boston is currently in second place in the East
standings.
"I didn't come back to be no role player, Doc," Tatum said weeks after the
surgery to his physician during a checkup that was chronicled in the recently
released documentary "The Quiet Work," which followed his rehab process.
When Tatum was injured last season, his thoughts quickly pivoted away from the
devastation he felt for himself and what would soon be the end of his team's
bid to repeat as NBA champions.
He made the decision quickly to begin the process of turning the page and opted
to have surgery the very next day.
The typical rehabilitation window to return to basketball action following
Achilles tendon surgery is between 9 and 12 months.
If he indeed plays on Friday, the 28-year-old Tatum, who had surgery on May 13,
will make his return to the court after 298 days.
That's not far beyond the recovery time it took for Naismith Basketball Hall of
Famer Dominique Wilkins to recover from his Achilles tendon rupture. Wilkins
returned at age 33 after 283 days to play in the 1992-93 season. He went on to
appear in 71 regular-season games that year, averaging 29.9 points per game and
being named to the All-Star team.
Tatum's childhood idol, Kobe Bryant, made it back to the court after about
eight months, but was hampered by subsequent injuries.
Tatum is in the first season of the five-year, $314 million extension he signed
in 2024. He celebrated his 28th birthday on Tuesday.
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