Celtics' biggest winner & loser have emerged 1 month into Jayson Tatum's return

It's been a month give or take since Jayson Tatum made his miraculous return to the Boston Celtics, and it's fair to say the returns they've gotten both from him and the team itself since he came back has been a 10 out of 10.

Many keep saying Tatum doesn't look like himself, but he's not too far from it either. His scoring, passing, rebounding, defense, etc., have all been much better than anyone could have anticipated, given what Tatum had to go through to get back on the court in a stupefyingly quick amount of time.

It's also been clear, one month into his return, that a few Celtics have benefited from his presence on the court while others have trended in the opposite direction. It's not like Tatum or the Celtics intended for this to happen, but it was inevitable.

But who has benefited and been hindered the most by Tatum's return? There has been one standout in each category.

Biggest winner: Neemias Queta

Queta already looked like a Most Improved Player candidate before Tatum came back. He went from the Celtics' fourth-string center to their starter and has passed pretty much every test Boston has given him. It's not like they weren't in a great place before Tatum returned, and Queta surpassing expectations played a hand in that.

In fact, when Tatum's return was imminent, many believed Queta would only continue to stand out. In short, the combo has proven the optimists were right.

In fact, their connection goes beyond what the game film will tell you.

Again, anyone who says Queta looked fantastic before Tatum re-entered Boston's lineup would be correct, but that doesn't detract from the fact that Tatum has made Queta look better than ever. Look no further than Queta's statlines in the Celtics' last four consecutive wins.

Queta vs. Charlotte: 17 points, eight rebounds, one block, one steal, eight-for-13 from the field
Queta vs. Miami: 16 points, 11 rebounds, three blocks, three assists, five-for-seven from the field
Queta vs. Milwaukee: 19 points, 10 rebounds, four blocks, two assists, eight-for-11 from the field
Queta vs. Toronto: 18 points, seven rebounds, four assists, three blocks, nine-for-10 from the field

Now, fans will point out that Queta has been putting up statlines like those all season long. In fact, none of those statlines compare to the best individual game he's had since becoming Boston's starting center.

However, Queta's never had a stretch where he's put up those kind of numbers consistently since Tatum came back. The fact that he's doing it just as Tatum is starting to get more comfortable not only shows the chemistry between the two, but how much better things are sure to get from here.

Queta has proven just how talented he is, but Tatum's return has proven just how much easier his life is when the two share the floor. Don't be surprised if Queta only continues to put up the statlines he has for the past four games with Tatum by his side.

Unfortunately, there's been someone who's been affected the complete opposite way Queta has since Tatum's comeback.

Biggest loser: Hugo Gonzalez

It really sucks to put this out there because, by all means, Gonzalez has been one of the Celtics' best stories of the season. He was much more NBA-ready than anyone could have imagined for a rookie who played an undeniable part in how Boston managed as well as they did without Tatum.

But facts are facts: since Tatum came back, Gonzalez has not been good. In fact, after being one of the net rating darlings for Boston pre-Tatum, Gonzalez has now become a net rating disaster.

From opening night until March 4, Boston was plus-10.9 with Gonzalez on the floor, second-highest on the team to only Derrick White. Since Tatum's return on March 6, Boston has been minus-21.3 with Gonzalez on the floor.

It actually does make sense because he and Tatum play the same position. Because of that overlap, Tatum's presence makes it so that Gonzalez sadly isn't as needed as he once was - FOR NOW, CELTICS FANS. FOR. NOW. - simply because Tatum cannot only do what Gonzalez does, but better, but also because he can do more due to the fact that, simply put, he's Jayson Tatum.

It's gotten bad enough that now Gonzalez is in the doghouse in favor of Baylor Scheierman and Jordan Walsh. He'll still get his chances, but they may not come until next season. It's bad now, but it will likely only be temporary. If the Celtics can get the Gonzalez production pre-JT's return with JT, the rest of the NBA should be terrified.

Obviously, Boston would prefer to be firing on all cylinders following Tatum's return (they pretty much are), but situations like these are inevitable. In a perfect world, everyone would benefit from Tatum's coming back. As long as Boston comes away with Banner 19, they'll live in this imperfect world.