298 days later Jayson Tatum is finally back in the NBA, returning for the Boston Celtics’ 120-100 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Friday. It was a commendable performance, with Tatum scoring 15 points on 6-of-16 shooting while also grabbing 12 rebounds and dishing out seven assists. That said, he knows what the world saw was just a shadow of his true abilities.
Advertisement
Post game, Tatum admitted it was an emotional return for him. It was a long road to recovery after he went down during the playoff series against the New York Knicks last year, but he made it back to full action earlier than most analysts and experts predicted.
Next time, JT
Jayson Tatum attempts the dunk in his return from injury. pic.twitter.com/gcYUxaqB5l
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) March 7, 2026
“God is the greatest for getting to this point. There were many days where I dreamed about this,” Tatum admitted on ESPN. “And for it to finally happen and share it with my family, my teammates, the crowd, it was everything I could’ve dreamed of.”
Perhaps the greatest part of Tatum’s return was his first two made buckets. On the first, he timed a rebound perfectly for a tip slam. On the very next possession, he got open in the corner and hit a step back three pointer that sent the Celtics crowd into a frenzy.
The return was euphoric, and he received a hero’s welcome at TD Garden. But he is not going to get complacent just because he is back in the lineup. He later said that he still needs to keep improving. Even so, it felt good to get back out there tonight.
“I still got a long way to go, but this was a huge step for me,” the 2024 NBA champ added.
“I still got a long way to go, but this was a huge step for me.” ❤️
Jayson Tatum after playing his first game since his Achilles tear pic.twitter.com/hHnMPEoNVN
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) March 7, 2026
Naturally, Tatum looked super rusty in his first game back. He didn’t score until around the end of the second quarter and missed his first six shots. That included a stretch where he airballed a three-pointer and got rim-checked while trying to dunk.
But once Tatum got on the board, he found his groove immediately. He made his next five baskets and quickly racked up 12 points. During that time, he also helped the Celtics seize control of the game, and the Mavs never got the lead back after that.
JAYSON TATUM BACK-TO-BACK BUCKETS FOR HIS FIRST POINTS OF THE SEASON pic.twitter.com/2ESHmQghI4
— ESPN (@espn) March 7, 2026
Tatum ended up playing 27 minutes by the end of the contest. It was a bit higher than expected for a player coming off a serious injury, but he showed that he was healthier than many anticipated.
At the end of the day, if Tatum can continue to shake off the rust, the Celtics could become very interesting heading into the playoffs. They have managed to remain the No. 2 seed in the East and are only four games out of first place. It has been impressive to watch.
Tatum’s return is only going to make Boston stronger as a team. He is a former 30 point per game scorer and one of the best players in the league when he gets going. With Jaylen Brown playing at an MVP level, they could definitely make a title run if everything breaks right.
