Boston Celtics’ Jayson Tatum ‘Has A Goal In His Mind That He Wants To Play’ This Season

Tatum told Eileen Finan of PEOPLE that he hasn’t ruled out playing this season for the Celtics, who won the 2024 championship against the Dallas Mavericks but lost to the New York Knicks in the second round of the 2025 playoffs.

“I’m doing everything in my power to get back as healthy as I can, as fast as I can,” Tatum said. “Nobody’s putting any pressure on me to come back at a certain point. But I’m also not ruling out that I’m not playing this season. The first most important thing is making a full recovery, being back 100% before I step on the floor, not compromising anything, I’m still only 27, I got a lot of basketball left. I’m not rushing it.”

One of the top players in the NBA, Tatum appeared in 72 games for the Celtics last season. He averaged 26.8 points, 8.7 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 1.1 steals and 0.5 blocks.

Tatum was the third overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft out of Duke. He’s made six All-Star teams and five All-NBA teams with Boston. The talented small forward has career averages of 23.6 points, 7.3 rebounds, 3.8 assists, 1.1 steals and 0.7 blocks.

Most NBA pundits believe Boston will be a middle-of-the-pack team in the 2025-26 season. However, if Tatum comes back near the end of the season, the Celtics will have to be taken seriously.