Jayson Tatum is back. One of the game's brightest stars and an NBA champion is set to return to the court after a brutal torn Achilles tendon injury during the playoffs last season. Tatum is back after 10 months as the Boston Celtics are the No. 2 seed in the Eastern Conference and ready to make another serious run to the NBA Finals.
With all the hype around Tatum's return, there is still a lot of work to be done. The Celtics host the Dallas Mavericks after coming off a bad loss to the Charlotte Hornets. Tatum would not return if he did not feel 100% ready to make a serious impact. It may take some time to get back to who he was before the injury. But after we all saw him struggle through the early stages of the rehab, you know that Tatum is just happy to be back doing what he loves.
Tatum walked into the arena on Friday night and responded with a “I'm excited” message as he was walking down the hallway to the locker room.
“How’s it feel to be back JT?”
“I’m excited.”
Celtics star Jayson Tatum arrives ahead of his first game since tearing his Achillies in the Eastern Conference SemiFinals 🤩🍀
(via @ESPN)pic.twitter.com/9UDZr7LYnz
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) March 6, 2026
ClutchPoints' Celtics reporter Daniel Donabedian wrote that Tatum's return will make life easier for the Celtics. Sam Hauser told him that Tatum will fit right back in.
“He's been around [practice], so I think he'll be able to fit right in,” he said. “We'll be able to fit around him.”
Jaylen Brown is having a phenomenal season, and that will continue with Tatum on or off the court. That duo has played so well together that they won a championship. To think that Tatum would ruin any flow the Celtics have is nonsense. Tatum returning to the court is great for the NBA.
