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Tim Bontemps
multiple authors
Boston– boston celtics star jayson tatum He said it was “unfortunate timing” that he was forced to watch Game 7 against philadelphia 76ers From the bench in street clothes due to stiffness in his left knee.
Speaking a day after missing the Celtics 109-100 loss In Game 7, Tatum detailed his comeback from a right hamstring injury last season, as well as a recent knee injury.
“My recovery and return [from the Achilles injury] It was going so well how it ended, I didn’t think it was going to end like this. “It was very unfortunate,” Tatum said Sunday.
“I worked really, really, really hard to get back into the same style and play at the level I was playing at. So it was hard to swallow the way it ended.”
The sudden and shocking end of the Celtics’ season was a difficult challenge for the group. Boston became the 14th team in NBA history to blow a 3–1 lead in a best-of-seven series – and the fourth team to do so with homecourt advantage.
Additionally, the sudden change in Tatum’s status – from not being on the injury report, to being questionable with left knee tightness on Saturday afternoon, to being ruled out less than two hours before the start of Game 7 at TD Garden – was the focal point of much of the discussion Sunday.
Tatum appeared to be bothered by something in the second half of Boston’s 106–93 loss in Game 6, although it was unclear whether he could return to the game after Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla waved the white flag with 10:24 remaining in the fourth quarter and Boston trailing by 23 points.
But Tatum said that after meeting with the medical team and his trainer, Nick Sang, it was decided he would miss Boston’s final game of the season.
“It was just with the staff and the medical team and Nick, they assessed everything that was going on,” Tatum said. “And I’m still in the window of return to play protocols, and there were some rules and a plan that we ultimately had to follow.
“And it was tough, obviously, I worked as hard as I did to come back and be available and get to Game 7 and not be there. I’ve just been saying that it was unfortunate and it’s tough to deal with, but it’s a plan we have to stick to.”
This is a scheme that has yielded some remarkable results in the last few months.
Tatum said at times Sunday that he was playing about 80-85% of his full capacity in his return from an Achilles injury less than 10 months ago, pointing out that his right leg is still shorter than his left. He averaged 21.8 points, 10.7 rebounds and 5.3 assists over the course of 16 regular season games before averaging 23.3 points, 10.7 rebounds and 6.8 assists in the first six games of this series.
With Tatum’s impressive return and Boston exceeding expectations, with 56 wins and the second seed in the Eastern Conference playoffs, the Celtics entered the postseason as the favorites to return to the NBA Finals. That feeling became even stronger after the Celtics took a 3-1 series lead with a blowout win over Philadelphia in Game 4.
Only a week later, Tatum was conducting an exit interview after watching Game 7 from the sidelines, and another season had ended in disappointment for him and the Celtics. That said, Tatum – who said his injury was a day-to-day issue, and that he could return at some point in the second round if Boston had won Game 7 – made it clear that this season should not be viewed as a disappointment.
“Yeah, the team was super, super exciting and fun to watch this season,” he said. “You know there’s only one team that can win a championship, and losing whenever it happens, early May or late June, it’s always hard to swallow.
“I don’t think how it ended should have anything to do with the development of each individual in that locker room and the steps they all took this season and what the expectations were for this team being a 2-seed and everyone having an important role and showing their value and just putting it together. It was a pleasure to watch this team, and it was a pleasure to be a part of it when I was able to join them.”
Tatum’s return to the team was never certain from the beginning.
Recalling the moment when he had Achilles surgery in New York less than 24 hours after being injured at Madison Square Garden, both Tatum and the Celtics never publicly committed to his return.
After returning to the court and playing well, Tatum said he was excited to have a full offseason to continue his rehabilitation process, and enter the next season completely at the same level he was at before his injury, stating that there were times during the process he doubted he would be able to do so.
But he also rejected the notion that it would have been better to sit out the full 18 months and return the following season.
He said, “I’m so happy I came back to be a part of their team, to do what I love, to help us, to give us a chance to compete for a championship, to prove to myself that I can get back to the same person I was, and hopefully get better.” “And to negate what this injury means, not necessarily from the standpoint of, like, ‘I’m great, look what I was able to accomplish,’ but to give other people that hope… Obviously, I don’t want anyone to have to go through their traumas.
“But in the unfortunate event that happens, I can be kind of an inspiration, like, if you attack rehab a certain way, if you follow these guidelines, or do it a certain way, that it doesn’t have to be like a career-ending injury, that you can’t come back, that you can be yourself, that you can get better, that it won’t take 18 months, that you can come back whenever it’s right for you.
“So I’m happy and proud of the fact that I was able to do that. And, unfortunately, if someone else has to deal with it, they can see what I was able to do and they have some hope and inspiration that it’s not what people thought. And you can come back from it and be like you were and hopefully get better.”
