How Jayson Tatum did in first game back from Achilles tear

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How Jayson Tatum did in first game back from Achilles tear

Brian Robb · MassLive

Sat, Mar 7, 2026 ·

2 min read

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Jayson Tatum made his season debut on Friday night against the Dallas Mavericks nearly 10 months after having surgery to repair a ruptured right Achilles tendon. The Celtics star started slow offensively but finished strong, posting 15 points, 12 rebounds and 7 assists in 27 minutes in Boston 's 120-100 victory over the Mavericks. He shot 6-of-16 from the field and 3-of-8 from 3-point range and was a plus-20 in his 27 minutes. Tatum returned to the court 298 days after undergoing surgery in New York one day after suffering the tear in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals.

Tatum got the start in place of Baylor Scheierman on Friday night and came out of the gate rusty with his shot. He missed his first six field goal attempts of the game including a wide open dunk attempt in the second quarter when he failed to get the lift to get above the rim.

Ultimately, Tatum broke through with an offensive rebound and dunk putback with 1:19 remaining in the second quarter for his first points of the night that brought the Garden to its feet. The star forward then knocked down his first 3-pointer of the game just 22 seconds later, sparking a 9-2 run for Boston to close the half to give Boston the lead. He finished the first half with five points, five rebounds and five assists in 14 minutes.

Tatum continued to build on his momentum in the second half as Joe Mazzulla opted to manage his minutes by primarily playing him six minutes at the start of each quarter while saving brief stint for him at the end of each half. The 28-year-old made five straight shots at one point after opening the game 0-of-6, crossing the double-digit point mark in the third quarter and adding a double-double shortly thereafter.

With Boston holding a 25-point lead with 5:01 left in the game, Tatum exited the game to a standing ovation. His next game will come quickly with Boston traveling to face the Cavaliers on Sunday afternoon in a potential East playoff preview.

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