Boston Celtics: Is Jayson Tatum back to pre-COVID form?

Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum was diagnosed with COVID-19 on January 9th, and that was largely the start of the decline for the squad.

From that point on the Cs have gone 13-15 and Tatum just has not looked the same. It was touched on in an article after a win versus the Pacers that Tatum had been in a little slump.

Sadly it did not stop there, and the All-Star had his worst stretch of the last two seasons between coming back from COVID and the All-Star break.

In that span, he averaged 23 points on 31 percent shooting from beyond the arc, and a 52 percent true shooting percentage, 5 percent below league average. Although these are not outright awful numbers, it is not what you expect from a player who is of his caliber.

By comparison, before Covid Tatum posted averages of 27 points on a near 50/ 40/ 90 shooting split. In that span, the Boston Celtics went 8-3 and were on par with the Eastern Conference-best Philadelphia 76ers.

Tatum looked like he had truly taken the leap into the top-10 pool, and Boston was looking like a legit contender. COVID has hit a lot of teams hard, but few as hard as the shamrocks.

Jayson Tatum even mentioned he was having trouble breathing, and it couldn’t have come at a worse time. Once Tatum returned, Boston played 23 games in 36 days, and the whole team, Tatum included, looked gassed beyond repair.

The Celtics probably needed the All-Star break more than most others.

Tatum has looked absolutely rejuvenated coming back from the break and is looking as good, if not better than he was before COVID.

He is averaging 27 points, six rebounds, and five assists on 55/ 50/ 100 shooting splits that includes a 67 percent true shooting percentage,10 percent better than league average. While the shooting splits may not be sustainable hopefully everything else is.

This team needs the 2x All-Star to be competing at his maximum capability to succeed. However, even with Tatum and Brown playing the best they can, it may still not be enough to contend, but the Cs have faced greater odds.

One thing is for sure — a 20-18 record does not reflect what this team can be at full strength and hopefully Tatum can continue this ultra-high level of play for the rest of the season.