BOSTON (AP) — Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum’s belated birthday present to himself will be a return to the game that was abruptly taken away from him last season.
Coach Joe Mazzulla said Tatum will start the Celtics’ home matchup with the Dallas Mavericks on Friday, marking his season debut almost 10 months after having surgery to repair a ruptured right Achilles tendon.
“It's been a long journey. And the culmination of a new journey begins today,”
Mazzulla said during his pregame news conference.
Tatum was listed as questionable for the game Thursday. It marked the first time this season he hadn’t been listed as out after rehabilitation for the injury he suffered during Game 4 of Boston’s Eastern Conference semifinal loss to the New York Knicks last May.
Tatum, who turned 28 this week, previously indicated his return to the court would be for a home game. That time has arrived.
"We've been having constant conversations, where you want to get to, how you're going to get there and what goes into that," Mazzulla said of the process Tatum took to get ready to play. “Really from Day 1 it's just been a constant conversation. Throughout the process you've just trusted this journey. I give him credit. We always knew he was coming back this year.”
Tatum's return will be on the same night that Mavericks No. 1 pick and Maine native Cooper Flagg will play his first NBA game at TD Garden.
But the night will almost certainly belong to Tatum, who arrived at the Garden with seats covered by white and green Celtics T-shirts featuring his name and No. 0 on the back.
The Celtics (41-21) have 20 games remaining in the regular season, including 11 at TD Garden. Boston is currently in second place in the East standings.
The typical rehabilitation window to return to basketball action following Achilles tendon surgery is between nine and 12 months.
Tatum, who had surgery on May 13, will make his return to the court after 298 days.
He's been clear since the start of his rehab process that his intention was to try to return to the court as the same player who was a catalyst during Boston's 2024 NBA championship run and who has earned five All-NBA and eight All-Star selections during his previous eight seasons.
“I didn’t come back to be no role player, Doc,” Tatum said weeks after the surgery to his physician during a checkup that was chronicled in the recently released documentary “The Quiet Work,” which followed his rehab process.
Celtics forward Sam Hauser said Tatum’s drive to return to action has been evident throughout the season, from his daily workouts to traveling with the team on road trips while not missing a beat in his rehab process.
“It speaks volumes to how much he loves the game of basketball. He has been out roughly 10 months and him willing to come back on every single trip,” Hauser told reporters following the Celtics’ shootaround Friday morning. “He wants to be part of this.”
When Tatum went down with his injury last season, his thoughts quickly pivoted away from the devastation he felt for himself and what would soon be the end of his team’s bid to repeat as NBA champions.
He made the decision almost immediately to begin turning the page and opted to have surgery the very next day.
His return wouldn't be far beyond the recovery time it took for Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer Dominique Wilkins to recover from his Achilles tendon rupture. Wilkins returned at age 33 after 283 days to play in the 1992-93 season. He went on to appear in 71 regular-season games that year, averaging 29.9 points and being voted to the All-Star team.
Tatum’s childhood idol, Kobe Bryant, made it back to the court after about eight months, but was hampered by subsequent injuries.
Tatum is in the first season of the five-year, $314 million extension he signed in 2024.
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