How Jayson Tatum will fit into this Celtics team if he returns has become a talking point in the media, but I don’t think it’s a real concern among Celtics fans. We know what JT brings in terms of impact, and we’ve seen him adapt his game and do whatever the team has needed for his entire career.
We’ve seen him work together with Jaylen Brown, leading to multiple trips to the Eastern Conference Finals and a title in 2024. Other than stirring the pot or making hot takes, there’s no rational reason to think Tatum returning to the court would create basketball problems for the Celtics.
But if there is one true concern for fans, it’s exactly what Steve Nash highlighted on the Mind the Game podcast with LeBron James. When talking about the Celtics and a potential return for JT from his torn achilles, Nash expressed some hesitance, “I do have concerns just because I want to see him play 10 years healthy from here on out.”
And that’s what it boils down to. We all want to see JT get back out there this season. We all want to see him get back to being himself. We all want to see him help push this super-fun, overachieving team over the hump and help them make a playoff run. But this is much bigger than this season.
Tatum’s long-term health is Celtics’ top priority
This season is a bonus. House money. Expectations have already been wildly exceeded. Any playoff success would just be a cherry on top. If Tatum is able to come back and help with that, amazing! But if not, that’s perfectly okay.
This is about the future of the franchise and being able to compete for championships for the next decade. Tatum is still just 27 years old, and Jaylen Brown is 29. Both players are under contract until 2029, and by getting under the luxury tax this season, the Celtics have set themselves up to build another juggernaut over the next few years.
The last thing they can afford to do is mess this up by allowing Tatum to return too early and risk some kind of aggravation or re-injury. We’ve seen players come back from this injury and reach their previous level of play. We’ve seen an older Kevin Durant continue playing at an MVP level into his late 30s.
Jayson Tatum is still the Celtics’ franchise player, and his return to a top-5 player in the league is the best hope for Boston to hang more banners this decade. They need to make sure every possible box is checked before he comes back and ensure that there’s no risk of creating long-term issues.
That’s the top priority. That’s the only thing that matters. But if those hurdles are cleared? It’s go time.