The Boston Celtics are set to open the 2025-2026 season looking quite different due to several reasons.
Boston had to make moves to get below the NBA's second apron, resulting in multiple key pieces from their 2024 title run getting traded away. This includes players like Kristaps Porzingis (traded to the Atlanta Hawks) and Jrue Holiday (traded to the Portland Trail Blazers), who were moved this offseason.
However, the Celtics will be without their franchise star, Jayson Tatum, after he ruptured his Achilles tendon in the Eastern Conference Semifinals back on May 12.
Tatum underwent surgery on his Achilles tendon just one day after the injury. While his recovery timeline could keep him out for all of next season, early signs indicate he's progressing well.
A Heavy Sports scout was able to get more intel on Tatum's injury progress after seeing him at Chris Paul's CP3 Camp in Las Vegas.
"'He was moving really well,' said the scout in a phone conversation with Heavy Sports later that day. 'There might have been a slight limp or something, but the surprising thing to me is that he didn’t have a boot for any of it,'" the scout said.
Tatum suffered the same injury in the NBA Playoffs that was seen from multiple other league stars, including the Indiana Pacers' Tyrese Haliburton and the Portland Trail Blazers' Damian Lillard.
There's no set timetable for Tatum's return, but hopeful speculation suggests the Celtics superstar could be back by the end of the upcoming regular season or sometime during next year's postseason.