Just a few short months after rupturing his Achilles during the second round of the playoffs against the New York Knicks, Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum is back on the court. He posted a video to his YouTube channel that showed him getting shots up and jogging around the court. It’s an unprecedented timeline for recovery.
“I’m rusty as a m***********,” Tatum said during the video. “I’m working my tail off to get back. To get healthy for the love of the game,” he also stated. At just 27 years old, Tatum is much younger than most players who have ruptured their Achilles, and that fact is evidently rearing its head during his recovery.
But when will he be back on the court?
When will Jayson Tatum be back for Celtics?
There’s no way of knowing when Tatum will be back on the court for Boston. For the most part, recovering from an Achilles injury takes almost a year. Guys like Kobe Bryant and Kevin Durant took around that long to get back on the floor. But they aren’t Tatum.
They weren’t 27 years old when they tore their Achilles, and they weren’t in the right spot at the right time to get the right surgery like Tatum was when he ruptured his in New York.
Dr. Martin O’Malley, the doctor who performed Tatum’s surgery, was available to get the procedure done within 24 hours of the injury occurring, a timeline that tends to lead to quicker/better recoveries.
But still, even with everything going in Tatum’s favor, nobody anticipated him getting back on the court as quickly as he has. For him to be shooting and running around the court is absolutely incredible.
Boston is set to head into next season with Jaylen Brown leading the way. Derrick White and Payton Pritchard will be right behind him, but the Celtics lost a bunch of important pieces this summer.
Jrue Holiday was traded to the Portland Trail Blazers, and Kristaps Porzingis to the Atlanta Hawks. Meanwhile, Luke Kornet left for the San Antonio Spurs in free agency, and Al Horford is expected to sign with the Golden State Warriors.
Still, should Tatum return at any point during the regular season, the Celtics could be better than most give them credit for. That is, if the rest of the squad can keep Boston in the playoff race while Tatum is still recovering.
Only time will tell how quickly Tatum actually returns to the court, but this video, combined with his recent media tour, is certainly throwing some good vibes into the mix.