Jayson Tatum's Status Update as Comeback Rumors Mount

Discussion about Tatum's return intensified after the NBA changed the schedule of the Celtics' home game against the Philadelphia 76ers on March 1. The game, originally scheduled for 6 p.m., was flexed to 8:00 p.m. and is now set to be televised by NBC.

NBC is also set to release a docuseries about Tatum, further fueling talk about his return.

The move prompted media personality Bill Simmons to theorize that Tatum will play against the 76ers.

"Between the third and fourth [All-Star] game, a three-minute Jayson Tatum comeback video about his journey made me super suspicious that NBC and he are working together," Simmons said. "I'd been hearing first week of March for a while... My money would be on March 1st now for him."

Ramona Shelburne of ESPN, however, downplayed the rumors surrounding Tatum's injury and return. She said that the Celtics star himself told her that he hasn't decided if he'll play this campaign.

"I still have not made a decision on whether or not I am coming back this year," Tatum said, according to Shelburne.

For what it's worth, Tatum has remained largely mum and non-committal about playing again this season. A report by Chris Haynes of NBA on Prime last month noted that Tatum is "re-evaluating his situation and is now considering sitting out the entire 2025-26 season."

Tatum also expressed concern about joining a Celtics team that is thriving without him, citing the potential of disrupting what the squad has built while he was out.

"If or when I do come back this season, they will have played 50 some-odd games without me, so they have an identity this year or things that they've felt have clicked for them," Tatum shared on “The Pivot Podcast."

"And it's been successful. ... So there is a thought in my head, like, how does that work? Or how does that look with me integrating myself off the injury … 50, 60 games into a season? There obviously could be some challenges. And it is a thought: Do I come back? Should I wait? It’s something that I honestly, recently, in the last two weeks or so just kind of contemplate every single day."