Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum is out of a New York hospital and met with his teammates in an emotional reunion on Thursday.
Tatum ruptured his right Achilles tendon in Monday’s 121-113 loss to the host New York Knicks in Game 4. He underwent surgery the following day.
Tatum possibly could be in attendance at Madison Square Garden on Friday night when the Celtics attempt to tie the Eastern Conference semifinals at three games apiece.
Boston impressively posted a 127-102 home win over New York on Wednesday to stave off elimination.
Being able to hang out with their franchise player was pleasing for a squad that was deeply concerned after Tatum’s devastating injury late in Game 4.
“It sucks to see someone go down like that who doesn’t deserve it,” Celtics guard Sam Hauser told reporters at Friday’s morning shootaround. “But he wouldn’t want more than us to just keep winning. We saw him yesterday. He seems to be in good spirits. Definitely thinking about him and trying to get some wins for him.”
NBA Sixth Man of the Year Payton Pritchard said that the get-together was more about Tatum the friend than Tatum the basketball star.
“We didn’t talk about basketball at all. That stuff is bigger than basketball now,” Pritchard said. “It’s seeing how he is as a person, how he’s dealing with stuff. The basketball side, we’ll handle that. But just want to check in as a friend.”
Tatum’s recovery timetable is estimated at nine months.
A six-time All-Star, Tatum helped the Celtics win the 2024 NBA title.
Also, Kristaps Porzingis was a lively performer during the Friday shootaround. He played just 12 minutes and missed the second half of Game 5 due to his viral illness. Boston coach Joe Mazzulla said after the contest that Porzingis was having trouble breathing.
