It came with smiles, cheers and relief from an entire city that welcomed him back to basketball.
It also was a reminder — to everyone — that the player who helped bring Boston a 2024 NBA championship and has five All-NBA and eight All-Star selections during his previous eight seasons, will need time before he's fully back to being himself.
Tatum had 15 points on 6-of-16 shooting, 12 rebounds and seven assists in a rust-filled 27 minutes. He played in five- and six-minute spurts in his first game since suffering the injury in during Game 4 of Boston’s Eastern Conference semifinal loss to New York in May.
“It’s been a long journey. And the culmination of a new journey begins today,” Celtics coach Mazzulla said during his pregame news conference.
Tatum, who turned 28 this week, said his return to the court would be for a home game. He made good on that promise Friday.
It started off slowly.
Tatum missed his first shot the night, misfiring a jumper off the back of the rim on Boston’s second trip down the floor.
He’d make his first contribution to the stat sheet on the Celtics' next possession — an assist — for tossing an alley-oop to big man Neemias Queta.
Tatum airballed his second field goal attempt of the game – a 26-footer from the top of the key – before heading to the bench for his first rest.
Late in the first quarter Tatum briefly left the court with trainer Nick Sang. But he returned to the bench in time to re-enter the lineup for the start of the second period.
He missed his first six shots, including three 3-pointers. But he continued to look for his teammates, adding another assist and actively screening to initiate the offense.
Fans rose to their feet in anticipation after Tatum got open and had a clean look at a dunk. He got hung up on the rim, though, a mishap he chuckled about a few minutes later as he jogged off the court during a timeout.
His scoreless streak was finally broken with 1:11 left before halftime when he glided in for a putback dunk off Payton Pritchard’s missed 3-pointer. After a Dallas miss, he followed that up by splashing a corner 3-pointer.
Celtics fans and Tatum’s teammates weren’t the only ones happy to see him back on the court.
Several Mavericks players took moments during breaks in the game to welcome Tatum back. They included Klay Thompson, who gave Tatum a hug prior to the start of the second quarter. Thompson tore his Achilles tendon in 2020 while rehabbing from an ACL tear in 2019.
Mazzulla said Tatum' return has been building for weeks.
“Really from Day 1 it’s just been a constant conversation," Mazzulla said. "Throughout the process you’ve just trusted this journey. I give him credit. We always knew he was coming back this year.”
Tatum, who had surgery May 13, made his return to the court after 298 days.
He's been clear since the start of his rehab process that his intention was to try to return to the court as the same player he was before the injury.
The Celtics have 19 games remaining in the regular season, including 11 at TD Garden to try to ramp up Tatum for what they hope will e a deep playoff run. Boston is second in the East.
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