In May 2025, the Boston Celtics did not expect to be in the position they are in now. Nobody did.
In the Eastern Conference semifinals, the Celtics fell to the New York Knicks, losing their six-time All-Star, Jayson Tatum, to a devastating Achilles tendon rupture. This injury has one of the longest recovery prognoses in sports, with stars like Houston Rockets forward Kevin Durant missing an entire NBA season. The Celtics spent their offseason letting go of key players like Jrue Holiday, Kristaps Porzingis, Al Horford, and others to save salary cap space. The Celtics were projected to be a play-in team at best, which are the seven through ten seeds in each conference.
Instead, the gutted Celtics roster secured the number two seed in the Eastern Conference, thanks to MVP-like performances by Jaylen Brown, Payton Pritchard, and Derrick White. The Celtics will face the Philadelphia 76ers in the first round of the NBA playoffs.
Tatum returned on March 6 and has averaged over 20 points and 10 rebounds per game since. Playing over 30 minutes per game, he has shown almost no signs of decline. Tatum brings both a crucial scoring asset to his roster and a veteran presence that can guide younger players like Baylor Scheierman, Luka Garza, and Ron Harper Jr., who all combined for 84 points in the last game of the regular season. These rising stars have taken on much larger roles on the team this year with the departure of most of the 2024 Finals roster and Tatum’s absence. The Celtics finished the season with a 56-26 record, going 43-23 without Tatum and 13-3 after his return.
Head Coach Joe Mazzula is a large reason for this unexpected success. As one of the more atypical coaches in the league, Mazzula has a sheer dedication to the game that is hard to find anywhere else in the NBA. Mazzula has helped Jaylen Brown step up as the captain of the team during Tatum’s absence, and has played Tatum as much as possible to get him acclimated to NBA pace play and ready for an intense playoff push, where possessions matter exponentially more than in the regular season.
“I think it’s really awesome and inspirational to see him come back in 10 months; it really energized the team and the Boston area for sure,” Eghosa Inomwan (Class II) said. Tatum has long idolized Kobe Bryant and his “Mamba Mentality,” which became popular after Bryant returned to play eight months after a devastating Achilles injury in 2013. The parallels have become even clearer as Tatum focused on strengthening himself and his bond with his teammates to come back just as strong as before. “Seeing the effort he put in to get back with his team after such a devastating injury has really motivated me to dig in and work harder as an athlete,” Nate Pichardo (Class II) said.
The Celtics are ready to compete for the NBA Finals again, now with elevated confidence in the form of a reinvigorated Tatum, strong young player contributions, and an MVP contender in Jaylen Brown. As the Celtics look to win the NBA championship again, Tatum’s return will surely provide a spark that could propel them to a nineteenth title.
