LOS ANGELES — NBC flexed the Celtics’ home game next Sunday to 8 p.m. from 6 p.m. in a move that sparked significant speculation over Jayson Tatum’s potentially impending return. The date seemed to fall in line with when Tatum could play again after practicing for the first time with the Maine Celtics earlier this month. Yesterday, NBC also flexed Celtics-Spurs to the national spotlight on Mar. 10.
Yet Tatum shot down the notion of a set return date on Saturday when asked by CLNS Media before Celtics practice. He still hasn’t practiced in full with the team, reportedly has several boxes to check before he can return and has no set return date in mind as he continues to assess his health and recovery daily.
“I do not have a date,” Tatum said. “Like I said, I just take it one day at a time. I feel better than I did yesterday, and that’s most important.”
Tatum participated in team workouts on Wednesday in San Francisco that included Jordan Walsh and Luka Garza, according to a social media post by the team. They did some five-on-five, but Tatum described his overall participation as limited and wouldn’t elaborate fully on what he’s doing on the court at the moment. Joe Mazzulla said that Tatum hasn’t practiced with the full group, because they haven’t had one since Tatum’s Maine Celtics session.
That went well, Mazzulla said, and they’re taking the steps from there following his planned progression. He’s continuing to check weight room boxes and additional unnamed steps needed to return. Tatum repeated that he’ll only play when he’s 100%, but wouldn’t say the percentage he’s at currently. Mazzulla also wouldn’t say whether Tatum was or wasn’t practicing on Saturday afternoon, though he shot around and laced his shoes prior to the session.
“He’s just continuing to get better,” Mazzulla said. “Working on his reads and then continuing to hit his checkmarks in the weight room and then in the treatment room as well. The main goal is just making sure he gets 100% healthy and continues to get better and better.”
“It’s just trusting the group that we have around him,” he continued. “And taking it step-by-step. So, just making sure we stick to that as much as we can. He came out of the Maine practice pretty well, and so we’ll continue to see it from there. It just depends as he continues to hit those check marks, whatever they may be.”
Mazzulla also addressed the mental hurdles involved in any recovery and said he’s trusting the collective team that’s addressing his physical and mental health leading up to a return. He doesn’t know the process and said it’s different for everyone, and they’re focused on getting him as close to a full recovery as possible. In terms of whether Tatum’s close, Mazzulla said he operates on principle not feel.
That secrecy continues to shroud whether Tatum’s return is imminent or unlikely this season, though his on-court appearances and the hype surrounding his return both grow weekly. NBC announced a documentary tracking Tatum’s recovery during All-Star weekend slated to begin late this month. And Tatum simply appreciated that he’s put himself in position for a return to remain a possibility with 27 games remaining.
He’s officially listed as out against the Lakers on Sunday. Boston continues its west coast trip at Phoenix and Denver on Tuesday and Wednesday, then the Celtics return home against Brooklyn on Friday before the highly-touted Mar. 1 national game against the 76ers.
“It’s just important that I’ve worked this hard to get myself in position where it could be a conversation (that I’ll return),” Tatum said. “I think we’ve done a really good job of that thus far.”
