May 10, 2025; New York, New York, USA; Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum (0) during game three of the second round for the 2025 NBA Playoffs at Madison Square Garden. Mandatory Credit: Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images Wendell Cruz-Imagn Images

Will Jayson Tatum Be Back When Celtics Make Playoffs? Insiders Weigh In

Originally posted on Boston Celtics on SI
By Alex Kirschenbaum | Last updated Sep 28, 2025 1:00 PM ET

Will the Boston Celtics' best player be back in time for the playoffs? Will Boston even make the playoffs without him?

Six-time All-Star power forward Jayson Tatum tore his Achilles tendon in Game of a doomed second-round playoff series against the New York Knicks this past spring, effectively ending his team's title defense.

A Possible Tatum Return This Year?

But even Tatum has hinted his recovery is ahead of schedule, seemingly insinuating during conversations this week that he could be back before the end of the 2025-26 season.

He'd be rejoining a very different-looking Boston club, without former starters Jrue Holiday or Kristaps Porzingis or reserve center Luke Kornet. Al Horford, for now, remains unsigned in free agency, but is allegedly poised to join the Golden State Warriors.

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In a poll of his colleagues Friday, Chris Forsberg of NBC Sports Boston dug into the Celtics' season outlook with Tatum sidelined for at least most of the year — and whether or not the 6-foot-8 Duke product could return in time for the playoffs, should Boston even make the playoffs.

Is this version of the Celtics still a legitimate playoff contender?

In the "Ramp to Camp" finale, @ChrisForsberg_ and our panel predict Boston's win total and playoff fate https://t.co/eFRll6uUij pic.twitter.com/vCVpMxMlqJ
— Celtics on NBC Sports Boston (@NBCSCeltics) September 26, 2025

NBC Sports Boston managing editor Darren Hartwell believes Boston will post a 43-39 record, and will nab the Eastern Conference's No. 6 seed. Hartwell predicts that Boston will face off against the Orlando Magic, who will earn the East's third seed — but notes that they'll have some help.

"They match up with the No. 3 seed Magic in Round 1, and while Tatum is back in the lineup, he's not quite up to full speed. Orlando exacts revenge for its 2025 first-round exit by dispatching the pesky Celtics in seven games," Hartwell predicts. This spring, Boston survived the Magic in a five-game walkover. "The good news: There's plenty of optimism heading into 2026-27, with Neemias Queta looking like a legitimate starting center and Payton Pritchard emerging as a go-to starting guard alongside Derrick White."

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"Celtics Pregame Live" host Kayla Burton, meanwhile, thinks Boston will boast the same record and the same conference finish — although she believes they'll lose to a different former 2025 playoff rival. Burton, too, thinks Tatum will be back in time for the postseason.

"I have the Celtics at 43-39 and finishing sixth in the East. They make the playoffs and lose in the first round to the Knicks in a rematch series," Burton writes. "Jayson Tatum is back for that series and Neemias Queta becomes the team's most improved player.