Jayson Tatum has been with the Celtics every step through the rehab process after rupturing his right Achilles tendon last playoffs. He’s on the bench watching his team, even traveling to away games. That’s not the norm for star players as many of them rehabilitate their injury somewhere else.
But Tatum has been a consistent figure around the Celtics, even if he really wants to play. “I miss basketball so much right now,” he said during a recent appearance on the “Morris Code Show.” Tatum detailed how rehab is going on the podcast, which features former C’s forward Marcus Morris and NBA veteran Markieff Morris.
“I’m feeling good,” Tatum said. “Man, it’s been a journey. This rehab (expletive) ain’t no joke. It’s been 29 weeks yesterday. So every Tuesday is a week. I’m feeling better, though. I’ve had 29 weeks to really work on my body. This is the strongest I’ve ever been. This is the best the rest of my body has ever felt.”
Tatum has teased workout videos during the rehab process, having fans wonder when he could return the court. The Celtics have not given a concrete timeline on when Tatum could be back. Some have believed he could return later this season to potentially give the Celtics a boost right before the playoffs. But that’s all speculation at this point as it doesn’t sound like Tatum himself knows when he could return.
The Celtics have impressed even without their best player in the meantime. They’re 12-9 on the season but have won seven of their last nine games. Jaylen Brown is playing great basketball as the team’s No. 1 option. Other potential future pieces have emerged, like Jordan Walsh, Josh Minott and Hugo Gonzalez.
When Tatum does make it back onto the court, he’ll also have other rotation pieces like Payton Pritchard, Derrick White and Sam Hauser still on the team. The C’s aren’t loaded with veterans like the past two years when they were title contenders, but there’s still talent. The Celtics could also look to make a trade ahead of the deadline.
Other NBA stars who suffered an Achilles injury have already called it a season. Damian Lillard and Tyrese Haliburton aren’t expected to play this year after going through the same injury last playoffs. For now, all that’s certain is Tatum is working hard behind the scenes during rehab.
“I’m just continuing to get healthy and get back to 100%,” Tatum said. “I’m trying to get as healthy as fast as I can. I ain’t rushing. But I need to be 100% before I get back on the court. Whenever that is, that’s when it’s going to be.”