Jayson Tatum's shocking injury could reverberate for months to come for the Celtics

Boston Globe

13-05-2025

Karl-Anthony Towns, who heard Tatum scream in agony, said a prayer as he limped by.
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Jayson Tatum was helped off the court late in Game 4 after an apparent leg injury on this play.
— ESPN (@espn)
The Celtics
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Tatum will receive an MRI on his lower right leg Tuesday, but the no-contact injury resembled so many Achilles' tears of the past, including Milwaukee's Damian Lillard last month. The repercussions for such a serious injury are significant — not only for this series, which appears to be done as soon as Wednesday in Boston, but for next season as recovery could be nearly a year.
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Tatum was the Celtics' iron man, a player who never turned down an opportunity to play, who had to be convinced to sit out games because of his dedication to the sport and those who wanted to see him play. The Celtics needed a vintage Tatum game Monday and they got it, but his body wouldn't let him complete his mission.
It's been a difficult postseason for Tatum health-wise. In Game 1 of the first-round series against the Orlando Magic, he was knocked to the ground by a hard foul from Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and sustained a significant wrist injury that he spent the past few weeks downplaying. It affected his shot and required considerable treatment.
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But he looked close to previous form Monday — splashing threes, keeping the Celtics close, even though they could do little to stop the Knicks from scoring. New York shot a blazing 67 percent in the second half and scored 40 of its 70 points in the paint, snatching the Celtics' will.
And that was before Tatum's devastating injury.
Jayson Tatum also went to the floor in pain in the third quarter, after being fouled on his injured wrist. But Tatum, per usual, got back up and sank his free throws.
Danielle Parhizkaran/Globe Staff
'It's tough,' forward Jaylen Brown said. 'There's not really a lot to say. We didn't say much (to each other). It wasn't a lot to say. Obviously, JT, everybody's concerned. But tonight defensively, our defense let us down. No resistance.'
The disappointment and shock was apparent in the locker room. Tatum and Brown have remained mostly healthy in their careers, with Brown missing the postseason in 2021 because of wrist surgery. Tatum sprained his ankle early in Game 7 of the Miami series in 2023, and that cost the Celtics a return trip to the Finals.
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Besides that, they have actually been fortunate health wise with their superstars, and that durability is the only reason they have repeatedly been to the Eastern Conference Finals.
Tatum was the model of that good health, bouncing back from injury after injury, refusing to relent to pain and discomfort. But Monday was just too much — not even for the man who has worked feverishly on his body, on his conditioning since entering the league in 2017, turning himself into a physical specimen able to that constant contact on his drives.
But this wasn't one of those drives. He passed the ball on the left wing to Brown, who drove and lost the ball as Tatum and Anunoby converged. Tatum pushed off his right leg in pursuit and then crumbled, and then spun in circles like a break-dancer, wincing in pain as two trainers rushed to attend to him.
Jayson Tatum came out firing Monday night, and celebrated this first-quarter 3-pointer in front of the MSG crowd.
Danielle Parhizkaran/Globe Staff
'Obviously, I'm always concerned about someone's health,' Celtics coach Joe Mazzulla said. 'It's two-fold. We're concerned about his health and where he's at, and what we have to do better for Game 5 when we get back to Boston. I got back there and talked to the medical staff and they said it was a lower-body injury.'
But watching Tatum unable to rise on his own just weeks after he implored Tatum to get up after the wrist injury had to be the ultimate gut punch. The Celtics have had a difficult postseason. Repeating has been more difficult than they expected with a heathier Tatum, and now this.
'So the fact that he had to be carried off, he's the type of guy that gets right up,' Mazzulla said. '(This time) he didn't.'
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The future of the organization is now in serious question. Tatum is the Celtics' franchise player and could miss all of next season, and there were already likely to be some financial changes to escape the vaunted second apron.
So now the business of basketball and the long-term health of Tatum could force the Celtics to take a considerable step back.
Tatum is only 27, just entering his prime, but nothing in this game is guaranteed, especially good health. There is remote hope the Celtics receive better news than what is expected, but they'll have to move forward without their cornerstone — and the only reaction right now is shock and devastation.
Gary Washburn is a Globe columnist. He can be reached at