The Boston Celtics are set to host the Charlotte Hornets in an ESPN Friday night primetime matchup. The team is already without Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart, but now could also be down their top star Jayson Tatum, who was a surprise addition to the NBA Injury Report due to a non-COVID illness.

Ailments are always tricky, so the question fans will probably be asking is, if Jayson Tatum will be playing tonight vs. the Hornets?

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Jayson Tatum injury status vs. Hornets

Tatum was listed questionable but has since been upgraded to probable, per Jay King of The Athletic. It is still possible the team might want to see how fresh he feels before the 7:30 p.m. (ET) tip-off, but this development as well his presence at shootaround indicate that he has a good chance to play tonight.

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The Celtics have dealt with lingering injuries to their core players throughout the season, but with Brown suffering a facial fracture in Wednesday's game against the Philadelphia 76ers and Smart still nursing an ankle injury there is a bit more concern now. The Milwaukee Bucks have been on a tear and sit only one game back of the C's.

A home meeting with basement-dwelling Charlotte, however, might not threaten Boston's NBA-best 39-16 record even if Tatum is unavailable. The shorthanded Celtics withstood the wrath of Joel Embiid and a double-double from James Harden to pull off a signature victory over the 76ers. Tatum was only 5-of-15 from the field, but did impact the game in other ways with nine assists and eight rebounds.

His presence is always missed by virtue of him being among the NBA's elite, but head coach Joe Mazzulla might feel a light work load for Tatum against tank-happy Charlotte will be more than enough to get the W.

So when it comes to Jayson Tatum playing against the Hornets Friday night, fans should expect to see Tatum suit up.