The amount of conversation around Jayson Tatum and his comeback from injury all season long grew almost nauseating by the time he finally returned. Not because of anything that Tatum did or didn’t do, but just because of all the noise around him and the Celtics, and what an impact player he has proven to be in his career.
Not only was the discourse growing louder, but it was also the most obnoxious, lowest-common-denominator kind of discourse. We heard talk about how Tatum would “fit in” with the team, whether he would mess up the newfound identity and chemistry that have been building all year, and even the old, tired classic about whether he could "learn" to play alongside Jaylen Brown.
Things got so ridiculous that innocuous, honest, introspective comments from Tatum that made perfect sense for a person in his position were spun into another absurd narrative: that he didn’t want to come back this season and was worried about somehow messing up the good thing the Celtics had going in his absence.
Stein emphasizes that the only question was Tatum’s health
Tatum has only been back for two games, but he has already proven with his play just how dumb all of these talking points were. As if it wasn’t evident enough from watching the team in action, senior NBA insider Marc Stein went on the All-NBA Podcast with Adam Mares to discuss JT’s comeback.
Stein quickly made it clear that the only question that was ever actually in doubt was whether or not Tatum was healthy enough to return. That’s it. Since the night of the injury, he has been 100% committed to rehabbing, recovering, and coming back better than ever, as soon as possible, to help the Celtics win games.
This has been the plan all along. Regardless of what the media, fans, and hot-take artists have been spewing, when it comes to the Celtics and Tatum, and the decision-makers who actually matter, there has never been a shred of doubt.
Tatum’s return has quickly put dumb narratives to rest
Yes, JT is a superstar and one of the best players alive, but he plays the game the right way, and he’s all about winning. He’s been an additive star who makes everyone else better for years, and has spent almost a decade building an unstoppable duo with Jaylen Brown. The idea that this ever wouldn’t work for basketball reasons was a joke, and after seeing a couple of games, it looks even more outrageous that it was ever even a conversation.
All this ever came down to was Tatum’s health and recovery. He has been busting his ass to get back on the court and has been playing 5-on-5 for weeks. He has clearly been itching to get back on the floor and help his team, and as soon as he was cleared and felt ready, that’s exactly what happened.
Barring a setback, playing as soon as possible has been the vision from day one. All the other stuff along the way was just nonsense. Now, he has returned, and we’re all seeing firsthand how much even this compromised version of JT helps the team.
Thinking that this generational winning basketball player was going to do anything other than play basketball and contribute to winning as soon as he was ready was about as foolish as it gets.