The timing almost felt too perfect.

On a weekend when the basketball world already had its attention fixed on All-Star festivities, Jayson Tatum quietly reminded everyone that his story this season has never been about highlight dunks or stat lines.

It’s been about patience. About recovery. About the kind of grind most fans never see.

And now, the rest of the world is about to see it.

During Sunday’s festivities, the NBA and NBC dropped a trailer for a new five-part docuseries titled “The Quiet Work,” a behind-the-scenes look at Tatum’s journey back from the torn Achilles that has kept him sidelined for months.

The YouTube description sets the tone for what’s been a defining stretch of his career:

“For the first time in his life, the game that defined Jayson Tatum was taken away by an Achilles injury. The five-part docuseries THE QUIET WORK follows Jayson through the most challenging stretch of his career as he fights to return to the NBA. From the locker room to the hospital room, through rehab and recovery, and ultimately back to the court, this is the unseen side of his journey and the work no one ever witnesses. Until now.”

If you’ve followed this team closely - and if you’ve read anything we’ve talked about over the last few weeks - you know this has never felt like a typical rehab process. The messaging has been cautious, but the breadcrumbs have been everywhere.

You had Tatum ramping up to controlled 5 on 5 work. You had him getting on the floor with the Maine Celtics. You had teammates consistently talking about how good he looks. And now you have a full-scale media rollout documenting the journey.

Add in the other interesting development from earlier in the weekend…

The Boston Celtics’ (35-19) March 1 home game against the Philadelphia 76ers (30-19) was moved from a 6:00 p.m. ET tip to 8:00 p.m. in primetime on NBC - the kind of scheduling shift that doesn’t usually happen without a little extra intrigue.

Tatum has said before that he’d love his first game back to be at TD Garden, and suddenly the calendar feels like it’s lining up in a way that’s hard to ignore.

Of course, the organization continues to preach patience.

President of Basketball Operations Brad Stevens made that crystal clear earlier this week.

“[It’s] best for Jayson Tatum to come back when he’s 110% healthy, he’s fully clear by everybody that matters in that decision and he’s got great peace of mind and ready to do it. That’s it. That’s the objective and that’s what we’re gonna stick with,” Stevens told the media at Auerbach Center.

“When we feel 100%, it’ll be his, it’ll be a group getting together and talking, but I think our medical people are really good, I think his doctors are really good, so we’re gonna listen to them, he’s listening to them. I think he and Nick have had an amazing work ethic through this recovery, and when it’s right, then we’ll all sit down and talk about it, but there’s still no force from us, there’s no pressure from us, but there’s also not going to be any of us saying, well, why don’t you take another week? When he’s ready, he’s ready.”

That’s been the consistent theme from the team side - no rush, no shortcuts, no unnecessary risks.

Tatum, for his part, has struck a similar tone even as his workload increases.

After getting back on the floor for a workout with Maine, he said simply, “It doesn’t mean I’m coming back or not.”

And yet, when you step back and look at the full picture - the docuseries announcement, the primetime flex, the ramp-up to live action, the steady drumbeat of optimism - it’s hard not to feel like the momentum is building toward something.

Nothing has been officially declared. No date has been circled in ink.

But the tea leaves are there.

And for a Celtics team that’s already looked like one of the best groups in the league while holding down the fort without its superstar, the idea of Tatum walking back onto the parquet suddenly feels less like a question of if and more like a question of when.

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Tom Carroll is a contributor for Roundtable, with boots-on-the-ground coverage of all things Boston sports. He's a senior digital content producer for WEEI.com, and a native of Lincoln, RI.