Former Duke Blue Devils star Jayson Tatum has made a shocking NBA decision.
Last May, Duke Blue Devils legend Jayson Tatum suffered a torn Achilles during the Boston Celtics' NBA playoff run.
At the time, the prevailing thought was that Tatum would miss the entire 2025-26 campaign considering the recovery time associated with such a devastating injury.
However, over the summer, buzz began to surface regarding an early return for Tatum.
During the early stages of the regular season, more and more news of Tatum's rapid progress made waves, and it became increasingly likely that the six-time All-Star would ultimately step on the hardwood this year.
Well, now, we know that Tatum will be returning.
Shams Charania of ESPN has reported that Tatum will play this season and could make his debut as soon as Friday against the Dallas Mavericks.
Tatum is now 10 months removed from his Achilles tear, and clearly, the Celtics must be 100 percent confident that there is no real risk of re-injury.
Boston has gone 41-21 without Tatum, and while the Celtics don't really look like true championship contenders, they obviously aren't playing for a lottery pick.
It remains to be seen just how effective Tatum will be upon his return. You have to figure that the 28-year-old will need at least one full season under his belt to begin resembling his normal self, so rust should be expected from him this spring.
Last year, Tatum averaged 26.8 points, 8.7 rebounds and six assists over 36.4 minutes per game on 45.2/34.3/81.4 shooting splits. He owns career averages of 23.6 points and 7.3 boards a night.
Tatum spent one season at Duke in 2016-17 before making the jump to the NBA, where he was selected by Boston with the third overall pick that ensuing summer.
Since then, the St. Louis native has gone on to establish himself as one of the best players in basketball, earning four First-Team All-Pro selections. Most importantly, he led the Celtics to an NBA championship in 2024.
Tatum also accepted a position as Duke's chief basketball officer before the start of the 2025-26 college basketball season.
We'll see if Tatum is able to help elevate Boston with the NBA playoffs just around the corner.
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