Between the Celtics getting crushed by the Knicks and the Patriots getting crushed in the Super Bowl, Sunday was a rough one for Boston fans, but Monday has brought much better tidings. The Celtics announced that Jayson Tatum will be assigned to the Maine Celtics and will participate in portions of practice with Boston’s G League affiliate on Monday afternoon.
This is a massive step in the recovery process, both physically and mentally, as Tatum will be competing against professional players for the first time, including rookies Amari Williams and Hugo Gonzalez, who will also join the practice. We got word from Shams Charania on Sunday morning that Tatum had done 5-on-5 scrimmages against the Celtics’ coaching staff.
That must have gone well, as one day later, he’s going to partake in a real practice for the first time. The press release did not offer any further details of the practice, just stating that Tatum will “participate in portions” of the Maine Celtics’ practice on Monday afternoon that will take place in the Auerbach Center in Boston, and would be immediately recalled to the Boston Celtics afterwards to continue his rehab.
Tatum participating in practice a huge step in right direction
Obviously, this is massive news for Tatum and the Celtics, as he is checking every box in his rehab, now progressing to playing against actual players. They won’t be going easy on him or treating him any differently than they would any other player in practice. That’s massive.
It means that JT is feeling good, feeling confident, and ready to keep taking steps towards returning to play. From this point, the next steps are anyone's guess, but it’s reasonable to imagine we could see an even greater ramp-up if this practice goes well.
Tatum still without timetable to return
The Celtics’ press release ended by saying, “No additional information regarding Tatum’s recovery is available at this time; further updates will be provided as appropriate.” So, while this is very exciting news, it’s still just one step, and there are still many more hurdles to clear.
But still, it’s absolutely reason for excitement, and the next natural steps would seem to be practicing fully, scrimmaging 5-on-5 against G League players and end-of-bench guys, and then eventually (GULP), making his long-anticipated return to the court, likely with a strict minutes restriction.
We still may be a long way away from that, and we still don’t even know if JT will come back at all this season. Either way, this is a big step, by far the best news fans have gotten, and this absolutely gives credence to the idea that the Celtics will have Tatum back in action at some point this season.