Earlier this week, Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum posted a video on his YouTube channel chronicling his recovery from the torn Achilles he suffered last season vs the New York Knicks, featuring clips of himself playing basketball in a Celtics gym. The fact that Tatum is already at this stage of his recovery process less than five months since suffering the injury caused great excitement within the Boston fanbase, and from the NBA world as a whole.
On Sunday, Houston Rockets star Kevin Durant took to X, formerly Twitter, to show his support for Tatum amid the latest milestone.
“Insane. Let’s get it JT,” wrote Durant, quote tweeting a post from Celtics on CLNS.
Durant himself suffered a torn Achilles injury during his final game with the Golden State Warriors in the 2019 NBA Finals vs the Toronto Raptors. Durant would go on to miss the entirety of the 2019-2o NBA season but returned with a vengeance in 2021, helping carry the injured Brookly Nets to Game 7 of the Eastern Conference semifinals that season and proving that he had fully overcome the injury.
Celtics fans will be hoping for a similar outcome for Tatum.
A great sign for Jayson Tatum
After Jayson Tatum initially suffered the Achilles tear in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semis against the Knicks in May, the consensus seemed to be that he would miss the entire 2025-26 NBA season, no questions asked.
However, Tatum himself recently cast doubt on that during a recent appearance on ESPN's First Take, saying that while he was being careful not to rush things, a return this upcoming season has not been ruled out.
The Celtics parted ways with a plethora of talent this offseason, trading Kristaps Porzingis to the Atlanta Hawks and Jrue Holiday to the Portland Trail Blazers over the summer. They also officially lost Al Horford when he signed with the Golden State Warriors on Sunday.
Still, if Tatum is somehow able to return in 2025-26, Boston could resume contender status in a weak Eastern Conference.
The Celtics will kick off their 2025-26 season on October 22 against the Philadelphia 76ers.
