“No NBA player since Jose Juan Barea in 2019 has returned sooner than 10½ months after an Achilles rupture, suggesting the Celtics should plan on Tatum missing the entire 2025-26 regular season,” Pelton wrote. “A postseason return is more realistic, but there's basically no precedent for that.”

Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum will miss the rest of the season after tearing his Achilles tendon. The team announced Tuesday that Tatum had surgery to repair the injury. Tatum, 27, was hurt in the fourth quarter of Monday’s game four playoff loss to the New York Knicks.