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So I preface this as I discuss one of our town鈥檚 greatest athletes ever, Jayson Tatum of University City, whose ruptured Achilles tendon injury, this past week during the NBA playoffs, was sports鈥� version of devastating.

Tatum is a top-five NBA player 鈥� he made first-team All-NBA the previous three seasons, and will likely make it for this season, too. Last year, he led the Celtics in scoring, rebounding and assists 鈥� and Boston won the NBA title, Tatum鈥檚 first, as he totaled 31 points, eight rebounds and 11 assists in the closeout game.

This year, he led the Celtics in scoring, rebounding and assists, again. Boston finished with a steamrolling record of 61-21. No Celtics team had repeated as NBA champion since 1969 鈥� would this be the one? Yes, the New York Knicks were winning the second-round series, 2-1, when Tatum collapsed onto the hardcourt in the fourth quarter Game 4 (he had 42 points, but Boston trailed by nine). Regardless 鈥� with Tatum, anything is possible. Or, I suppose, anything was possible. Because a guy who led Boston to the conference finals as a 19-year-old rookie 鈥� and to the conference finals in five of his first seven seasons 鈥� discovered his Achilles鈥� Heel, that being his Achilles.

New York won the series in six games.

Tatum won鈥檛 get a chance to win the NBA championship this year.

And because of the severity of the injury 鈥� and the history of its possible year-long recovery timetable 鈥� one can wonder if he鈥檒l even play next season.

It鈥檚 flabbergasting 鈥� Jayson Tatum might not play a game until the 2026-27 NBA season.

In a sports realm, this is history-altering.

As the great ESPN writer Kevin Pelton put it, 鈥渉is injury is one of the most consequential in NBA history.鈥�

Tatum is a resplendent talent and a relentless worker 鈥� and he respects the heck out of the history of the game. The late Kobe Bryant is his idol. His inspiration. Well, Kobe won five rings. It wouldn鈥檛 be blasphemous to suggest Tatum will miss out on two rings due to this injury.

And we can even take the title talk out of the equation. The simple, somber reality is that a sports superstar will, likely, miss an entire season in his prime. You feel for the superhuman human.

Over the years, I鈥檝e reported and written numerous columns about Tatum, from his glorious senior season at Chaminade to this particular postseason. And so, I鈥檝e gotten to know numerous people close with him 鈥� who pour themselves into him. Family, friends, personal trainers, former coaches 鈥� this injury is painful for each of these believers.

The ramifications of the injury are small and big. For instance, a commercial has been pulled. Tatum helped promote the new 鈥淪uperman鈥� film, written and directed by St. 香港三级片 native James Gunn. Tatum played a Clark Kent-type role in ad, in which Tatum would 鈥渟ub in鈥� for Superman. Sportico reported that the ad was pulled after it 鈥渞eceived 37 million impressions across 185 showings for an estimated media value of $495,000, according to iSpot.鈥�

So, yeah, the Achilles was also Kryptonite.

And on a larger scale, the injury puts the Celtics in a bind. What is the franchise鈥檚 trajectory without Tatum? Of course, Jaylen Brown is a high-level player, too. But if Boston believes Tatum will likely miss the entire 2025-26 season, will they pay for key older role players or trade them for younger players and draft capital?

One beautiful thing to come out of this has been the response from Boston fans and social media. The Celtics posted a brilliant video featuring fan sentiments toward the great Tatum. And his teammates told media members that they got a hotel visit from Tatum in New York, where his surgery took place.

鈥淲e didn鈥檛 talk about basketball at all. That stuff is bigger than basketball now,鈥� Boston teammate Payton Pritchard told reporters. 鈥淚t鈥檚 seeing how he is as a person, how he鈥檚 dealing with stuff.鈥�

Tatum himself posted an Instagram photo from a hospital bed. It was just heartbreaking to see. Yes, he鈥檚 already made hundreds of millions of dollars. Yes, he鈥檒l still be under 30 when he likely returns to NBA action. And, yes, back home in St. 香港三级片, the realities of a tornado touchdown reverberate.

Still, it鈥檚 fair to be sad for Tatum, to feel for him. It all just makes you ask. Why him? Why now? Why an injury of this severity? I鈥檓 sure there are some life lessons hidden in all of this. But the lessons can鈥檛 do anything to stop time. Lessons don鈥檛 lessen the blow.