Tatum undergoes season-ending Achilles surgery, dealing blow to Celtics' repeat hopes

Kyle Hightower · The Associated Press

· Posted: May 13, 2025 7:11 PM EDT | Last Updated: 9 minutes ago

When Jayson Tatum toppled to the court, writhing successful symptom and grabbing astatine his close ft precocious successful the Celtics' Eastern Conference semifinals Game 4 nonaccomplishment to the New York Knicks, it looked similar a perchance season-altering injury.

Boston's worst fears are present confirmed.

Tatum had country Tuesday to repair a ruptured close Achilles tendon that volition sideline him for the remainder of the playoffs, the squad announced.

The Celtics provided details connected the grade of Tatum's wounded and announced quality of the country a time aft the six-time All-Star went down successful the Celtics' 121-113 Game 4 nonaccomplishment to the New York Knicks. It puts the hopes of the defending champions repeating and Tatum's playing presumption for adjacent play successful doubt.

They did not springiness a timetable for his return, but said a afloat betterment was expected.

The 27-year-old Tatum is starring the Celtics successful points (28.1), rebounds (11.5) and assists (5.4) per crippled for the 2nd consecutive postseason.

The Knicks pb the Celtics 3-1 successful their Eastern Conference semifinals series. Game 5 is successful Boston connected Wednesday night.

Tatum was carried disconnected the tribunal with 2:58 remaining successful Monday night's game. The Celtics had conscionable turned the shot implicit and arsenic Tatum moved for the escaped ball, his limb gave retired and helium went down. He buried his look successful a towel successful evident symptom portion grabbing astatine his limb supra the ankle aft the noncontact injury.

Tatum scored 42 points, his highest full during these playoffs and 1 of the champion all-round postseason performances of his career, earlier helium was hurt.

The wounded was Tatum's 2nd this postseason. He missed Game 2 of Boston's 4-1 first-round bid triumph implicit Orlando with a bony bruise successful his close wrist. It was the archetypal clip he'd missed a playoff crippled successful his career.

Celtics look uphill battle

Now, Tatum's teammates volition look a daunting task that fewer teams earlier them person pulled disconnected if they privation to interruption an NBA grounds six-season drought without a repetition champion.

Teams holding a 3-1 pb successful the NBA playoffs person gone connected to triumph 95.6 per cent of the time, with lone 13 teams successful 293 tries ever coming backmost from the shortage to triumph the series.

"Obviously, we each recognize successful our heads what this could mean. This portion of the athletics — it's tough," Celtics centre Kristaps Porzingis said Monday. "We person to determination forward. He don't privation america to beryllium implicit present bittersweet and not play our champion basketball."

To go the 14th squad to flooded a 3-1 deficit, the Celtics volition request large performances from a roster that has respective players who person dealt with injuries this postseason.

All-Star Jaylen Brown entered the playoffs dealing with a close genu contented that has slowed him astatine times. Porzingis besides has been slowed astatine times by the lingering effects of a viral unwellness that sidelined him for stretches successful the 2nd fractional of the regular season.

'Get acceptable for the adjacent one'

Brown said Monday that his assurance remains high.

"Get acceptable for the adjacent one. Get acceptable to fight. Get acceptable to travel retired connected our location level and bash what we request to do," Brown said. "That's the goal. Still the goal. We've got capable successful this locker room. So, I judge successful my guys."

Regardless of however this bid oregon the remainder of the playoffs play retired for Boston, Tatum's wounded apt volition change however the franchise confronts this coming off-season.

Their existent payroll for adjacent play is connected way to travel successful astir $225 cardinal US, which would mean a taxation measure adjacent twelvemonth of astir $280 million. The combined imaginable $500 full terms tag would beryllium a league record.

It is unclear whether the team's incoming caller ownership volition privation to support paying those hefty taxes to support the existent roster aft agreeing to a acquisition successful March that is expected to person a last terms of a minimum of $6.1 billion.

Tatum signed an NBA-record five-year, $314 declaration past July that volition statesman adjacent season. Brown is playing nether a five-year, $304 cardinal woody that kicked successful this season.

That means that trimming subordinate wage is simply a anticipation ownership could research this summer.

And with Tatum perchance missing each of adjacent season, it could accelerate the beforehand office's timeline for reworking the existent roster with an oculus toward the future.