The Celtics star Jayson Tatum has an Achilles surgery: Why injury could change the direction of the franchise

Jayson Tatum, star of Boston Celtics, was operated on to repair a broken Achilles tendon, the team said on Tuesday. The Celtics did not provide a schedule for his return.

Jayson Tatum was subjected to a successful operation today to repair a broken Achilles tendon with just Achilles. There is currently no schedule available for his return, but it is expected to recover completely. Further updates may be provided. pic.twitter.com/ttxziftmqb

– Boston Celtics (@Celtics) May 13, 2025

Tatum suffered the non-contact violation when he healed a loose ball at the end of the fourth quarter of the defeat of 121-113 against the New York Knicks in game 4 of the semi-finals of the Eastern Conference. After the OG Anunoby ended the game with a dunk, a few Celtics trainers carried Tatum off the pitch. Although the team did not know the severity of the problem initially, an emotional changing room in Boston seemed to fear the worst after the game.

“Obviously we all recognized in our heads what this could mean,” said Kristaps Porzi. “But this is part of the sport. It is difficult and it is difficult to see and difficult to accept, but it is what it is and we have to do what we have now.”

The Celtics 3-1 in their second round series will be held on Wednesday Game 5. On the edge of the elimination, you have to group quickly.

“I think everyone has a kind of loss of words just because not only lost the game, but also the concern for JT,” said Jaylen Brown after game 4.

The 27 -year -old Tatum enjoyed his best game of the after -season before the injury and scored 42 points in 40 minutes of action.

Although the Celtics said that Tatum would probably make complete recovery, it will probably take some time to get there. An Achilles tear usually has a recreational time bar of eight to 12 months, so it should be expected to miss a large part of the next season in addition to the current late season.

“Obviously they are always concerned about the health of someone,” said Joe Mazzulla. “So it is double. We are concerned about his health, where he is, and then we get what we have to do better for game 5 when we return to Boston.”

Tatum's injury could force Celtics to make a big pivot point

The violation of Tatum only complicates the coming off -season for the Celtics, who are already staring at an enormous luxury tax bill and are likely to make some difficult squad decisions.

If you only hold the current roster together, a salary statement of around 500 million US dollars, including luxury taxes, would lead. Before Tatum's injury, the sources of the league expected that the Celtics would lose the salary this summer to avoid this enormous price. Now that the team is probably excluded from the title content next season, the front office could consider even greater changes.

It would make sense to consider the Celtics to become younger when Tatum returns to the court. Al Horford, who will be 39 years old next month, is an upcoming Free Agent. Jrue Holiday, who will be 35 years old next month, will probably be 36 or very close if Tatum is healthy again. If the Celtics want to lose even more salary for the next season, they could also explore the trading market for Brown, Porziņģis and Derrick White.

It is difficult to underestimate the importance of the violation of Tatum. It could force a big pivot point for the organization. Although Kevin Durant and others recently granted hope to the athletes who broke hope from an Achilles tendon, it was historically one of the most harmful injuries for NBA players. Tatum will have a long way back to the court, and the Celtics have to reinterpret their plans around him.

(Photo: Elsa / Getty Images)