Jayson Tatum back on the court

[ajones9219]

Read on Twitter

Crazy progress at a little over 4 months

[Ruma85]

Read on Twitter

Crazy progress at a little over 4 months

Hope he comes asap & healthy as possible.

[levon]

That right calf looks so atrophied though. I think optimistically he returns end of March for a few games to get into rhythm and then gets shuts down for the playoffs.

[Ruma85]

That right calf looks so atrophied though. I think optimistically he returns end of March for a few games to get into rhythm and then gets shuts down for the playoffs.

Might as well return in the beginning of April, he did say he will return when his 100%, interested to see when that is.

[Johnny Firpo]

It wouldn't be unprecedented, it's just not the new norm. In the old days, players came back 6 months later from an ACL, and 8-9 months from an achilles. The problem is that now we know the stats and understand the injuries better. Basically the more you sit out, your chances of reinjuring it go down with each month until you reach that 12-14 months, where you've done everything you could. It might not matter much what he can do in practice, if he/the staff wants to future proof him as much as possible. Which i'm sure they want to do. KD, granted, is older, but he sit out 18 months with this. If Tatum only came back for the 2026/2027 season, he would miss 18 months.

[bisme37]

That right calf looks so atrophied though. I think optimistically he returns end of March for a few games to get into rhythm and then gets shuts down for the playoffs.

His surgeon says he has the strongest calf in the known universe haha

(Dr. Martin) O'Malley says that Tatum's progress has been impressive: "I don't think I've seen a person's calf look as strong as his. At six or eight weeks he was doing double heel rises. He worked his calf so hard that the side effect of loss of strength, I don't think he's going to have any."

https://people.com/nba-star-jayson-tatum-reveals-agony-of-ruptured-achilles-tendon-how-sons-kept-spirits-up-11813773

[levon]

That right calf looks so atrophied though. I think optimistically he returns end of March for a few games to get into rhythm and then gets shuts down for the playoffs.

Might as well return in the beginning of April, he did say he will return when his 100%, interested to see when that is.

I don't think he should be playing playoff intensity ball but who knows.

[Infinite Llamas]

So who comes back first?

Tatum or PG/Embiid?

Half joking

[Richard4444]

It also will depend on the overall strengh/competitive level of the Celtics this season.

If the Celtics is far from the playoffs or even a bad play-in team, they will not risk it.

[AddiFB]

I just hope they take the time needed instead of going for a quicker return than expected.

Would be devestating if he feels good, all tests and whatnot come out "wow you're Iron Man" and he returns in February or March, only to sit out with soreness that would bother him for a long time and/or eventual re-tear. Nobody wants to see that happen.

It sucks to sit out a full season but as an NBA fan I'd much rather see him return at full strength instead of going for the early return, if it means he's fully healed. F'ing it up because it felt good and returned sooner than expected, then being hampered by it, potentially career altering, is not worth it.

I know they'll be smart about this.

[JujitsuFlip]

I just hope they take the time needed instead of going for a quicker return than expected.

Would be devestating if he feels good, all tests and whatnot come out "wow you're Iron Man" and he returns in February or March, only to sit out with soreness that would bother him for a long time and/or eventual re-tear. Nobody wants to see that happen.

It sucks to sit out a full season but as an NBA fan I'd much rather see him return at full strength instead of going for the early return, if it means he's fully healed. F'ing it up because it felt good and returned sooner than expected, then being hampered by it, potentially career altering, is not worth it.

I know they'll be smart about this.

Keep in mind Kobe is his idol.

Kobe sat out a few days shy of 8 months with his Achilles rupture. He ended up suffering a seperate season ending injury after only being back 6 games. But i assume if Tatum rushes back, he will suffer a similar fate.

[GrindCityHustle]

I just hope they take the time needed instead of going for a quicker return than expected.

Would be devestating if he feels good, all tests and whatnot come out "wow you're Iron Man" and he returns in February or March, only to sit out with soreness that would bother him for a long time and/or eventual re-tear. Nobody wants to see that happen.

It sucks to sit out a full season but as an NBA fan I'd much rather see him return at full strength instead of going for the early return, if it means he's fully healed. F'ing it up because it felt good and returned sooner than expected, then being hampered by it, potentially career altering, is not worth it.

I know they'll be smart about this.

Keep in mind Kobe is his idol.

Kobe sat out a few days shy of 8 months with his Achilles rupture. He ended up suffering a seperate season ending injury after only being back 6 games. But i assume if Tatum rushes back, he will suffer a similar fate.

He wants dinner with Kobe but likes Durant better.

Watch on YouTube

[DusterBuster]

This doesn't seem wise...

Hope he's getting good advice.

[3toheadmelo]

You might expect all NBA players to have endless resources at their disposal, and therefore be able to get an Achilles rupture repaired on a 12-hour turnaround. But, that’s not typically the case.

For context, Damian Lillard ruptured his Achilles on April 27 and underwent surgery on May 2nd. DeMarcus Cousins tore his on a Saturday night and had the surgery on Wednesday. Wesley Mathews tore his Achilles on a Thursday, and had the surgery six days later. Rudy Gay also had to wait five days.

Even Kevin Durant, who often serves as the poster child for what a successful recovery can look like, tore his Achilles on a Monday night and had the surgery performed on Wednesday.

Though these were all high-profile NBA players, it always takes time to put everything together to make the surgery possible, Soslowsky explained.

“Fifty percent of their time, they’re not in their home city, and the choice of which surgeon you’re going to have perform that operation is a conversation between the athlete, the agent, maybe the team, ownership, maybe colleagues or friends of the athlete,” he said. “And once those conversations happen, those conversations take a little bit of time. They don’t happen within the first half hour, right? They begin then, and then, once you settle on the surgeon, depending on what city that surgeon is in, it’s often not in the city that you’re in. So, there’s some time involved there. And then that surgeon may have a clinic day that day, and they may not have an operating day until the next day or two days later.”

Almost miraculously, Tatum just so happened to already be in New York City, where the Celtics faced the Knicks at Madison Square Garden. And, Dr. O’Malley was available.

That reality, coupled with the fact that Tatum is so young — most NBA players who have suffered this injury have been at least 30 years old — puts him in uncharted territory. It also means that the somewhat discouraging data that currently exists regarding players’ decline upon return from an Achilles rupture might not necessarily be applicable in Tatum’s case.

“There’s not a lot of data on recovery from Achilles tear for a 27-year-old at 12 hours post-tear, right?” said Dr. Soslowsky. “There’s no data, really, out there.”

Surgeons universally recommend operative Achilles tendon repair as soon as possible to restore functionality and reduce the risk of re-rupture. But, regular people have to wait days, if not weeks, to go through all the hoops and hurdles of getting a surgery on the books.

“You’re going to get infiltration of biologic agents and cells that will create the beginnings of scar formation,” Soslowsky said. “Because this repair was within a day, those processes had only just begun, and with a surgical pair, the torn ends were put right back together before a lot of these adverse biologic effects occurred. And so the opportunity for a faster recovery really is present.”

[og15]

You might expect all NBA players to have endless resources at their disposal, and therefore be able to get an Achilles rupture repaired on a 12-hour turnaround. But, that’s not typically the case.

For context, Damian Lillard ruptured his Achilles on April 27 and underwent surgery on May 2nd. DeMarcus Cousins tore his on a Saturday night and had the surgery on Wednesday. Wesley Mathews tore his Achilles on a Thursday, and had the surgery six days later. Rudy Gay also had to wait five days.

Even Kevin Durant, who often serves as the poster child for what a successful recovery can look like, tore his Achilles on a Monday night and had the surgery performed on Wednesday.

Though these were all high-profile NBA players, it always takes time to put everything together to make the surgery possible, Soslowsky explained.

“Fifty percent of their time, they’re not in their home city, and the choice of which surgeon you’re going to have perform that operation is a conversation between the athlete, the agent, maybe the team, ownership, maybe colleagues or friends of the athlete,” he said. “And once those conversations happen, those conversations take a little bit of time. They don’t happen within the first half hour, right? They begin then, and then, once you settle on the surgeon, depending on what city that surgeon is in, it’s often not in the city that you’re in. So, there’s some time involved there. And then that surgeon may have a clinic day that day, and they may not have an operating day until the next day or two days later.”

Almost miraculously, Tatum just so happened to already be in New York City, where the Celtics faced the Knicks at Madison Square Garden. And, Dr. O’Malley was available.

That reality, coupled with the fact that Tatum is so young — most NBA players who have suffered this injury have been at least 30 years old — puts him in uncharted territory. It also means that the somewhat discouraging data that currently exists regarding players’ decline upon return from an Achilles rupture might not necessarily be applicable in Tatum’s case.

“There’s not a lot of data on recovery from Achilles tear for a 27-year-old at 12 hours post-tear, right?” said Dr. Soslowsky. “There’s no data, really, out there.”

Surgeons universally recommend operative Achilles tendon repair as soon as possible to restore functionality and reduce the risk of re-rupture. But, regular people have to wait days, if not weeks, to go through all the hoops and hurdles of getting a surgery on the books.

“You’re going to get infiltration of biologic agents and cells that will create the beginnings of scar formation,” Soslowsky said. “Because this repair was within a day, those processes had only just begun, and with a surgical pair, the torn ends were put right back together before a lot of these adverse biologic effects occurred. And so the opportunity for a faster recovery really is present.”

Definitely all positives, but still hope he doesn't rush anything, think big picture.

[Mirotic12]

This reminds me of how the US sports media was trying to gaslight people with stuff like, "Aaron Rodgers says he will play this season, and if anyone can do it, it's him."

How they were talking about Rodgers was supposedly out of a walking boot in like 2 weeks, was supposedly working out, running, doing leg lifts, squats, taking snaps, throwing on the move, within like a month.

There were even media claims that the doctors were amazed, had never seen anything like it, and that he must be a unique human that has some kind of special mutated calf and Achilles, and other such BS.

And yet, Rodgers most certainly didn't play that season.

[SNPA]

If I was a Celtics fan I’d be less than thrilled watching this.

[MAMBAEMD]

There is really no point for him to come back next season individually or team wise .

[OnlyTheTruth]

He should just rehab get stronger travel with the team and be a mentor. This season will be a waste for the Celtics anyways until he gets 100% and until they retool for another possible championship run. 2026/7 is where the Celtics could shine again.

[Deivork]

How is it even possible? I'm shocked. And glad.