Jayson Tatum’s Achilles injury could have been devastating, but experts believe his rapid surgery, performed just hours after the rupture, gives him a rare advantage.
According to experts, per Celtics Blog, the Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum might be in a better spot than most to bounce back from a ruptured Achilles tendon.
Jayson Tatum
Jayson Tatum
Jayson Tatum
MIN: 36.82
PTS: 26.96 (53.51%)
REB: 8.94
As: 5.93
ST: 1.16
BL: 0.55
TO: 2.94
GM: 80
The 27-year-old underwent surgery just hours after the injury at New York’s Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS), with world-renowned specialist Dr. Martin O’Malley performing the procedure. The quick turnaround is not just impressive, it’s rare.
“That is really atypical — even for a professional athlete or a high-profile individual — that is atypical,” said Dr. Lou Soslowsky, founding director of the Penn Achilles Tendinopathy Center of Research Translation. “So that is really wonderful.”
Speed makes Tatum’s case stand out. Most NBA players have had to wait several days before surgery.
Damian Lillard waited five days. DeMarcus Cousins waited four. Wesley Matthews and Rudy Gay also had to sit tight before going under the knife. Even Kevin Durant, who rehabbed successfully after his Achilles tear, had to wait two days.
“Fifty percent of their time, they’re not in their home city, and the choice of which surgeon you’re going to have perform that operation is a conversation between the athlete, the agent, maybe the team, ownership, maybe colleagues or friends of the athlete,” Dr. Soslowsky explained.
“And once those conversations happen, those conversations take a little bit of time. They don’t happen within the first half hour, right? They begin then, and then, once you settle on the surgeon, depending on what city that surgeon is in, it’s often not in the city that you’re in.”
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“So, there’s some time involved there. And then that surgeon may have a clinic day that day, and they may not have an operating day until the next day or two days later,” the doctor added.
Tatum just happened to be in the right city at the right time. Dr. O’Malley, based in NYC, was available. That rare alignment could make all the difference.
“There’s not a lot of data on recovery from Achilles tear for a 27-year-old at 12 hours post-tear, right?” said Dr. Soslowsky. “There’s no data, really, out there.”
In general, the earlier the surgical repair, the better the outlook. That’s because waiting too long allows scar tissue and inflammation to settle in, complicating healing.
“You’re going to get infiltration of biologic agents and cells that will create the beginnings of scar formation,” Soslowsky said. “Because this repair was within a day, those processes had only just begun, and with a surgical pair, the torn ends were put right back together before a lot of these adverse biologic effects occurred. And so the opportunity for a faster recovery really is present.”
Even so, a cautious approach remains likely. Dr. Soslowsky doesn’t expect the Celtics to rush Tatum back.
“At some point in some months, we’ll get a much better idea of whether they’re going to try and get back next season or not,” he said. “If you want to be conservative, one would say, well, it’s probably a 12-month rehab anyway.”
“Therefore, let’s let him sit out and give him the best shot during the following season. On the other hand, if in a handful of months he’s doing well, then there’ll be the push and pull to say, we can get him back next season.”
According to ESPN’s Marc Spears, Tatum’s father, Justin Tatum, is hopeful for an 8-9 month return window, which could see the All-Star back on the floor as early as February.
“I think the likelihood of coming back next season is pretty low, honestly,” Soslowsky said. “But in some ways that might be just as well, because we have seen when people do come back early, there certainly is a risk of relapsing.”
“That would be catastrophic, that would be awful. And so that’s not something that one would want to risk. On the other hand, we’ll know in a few months how he’s progressing.”
Recovery isn’t just about the tendon healing. Conditioning will also play a major role in determining when Tatum is ready for game action again.
“One of the difficulties of Achilles tendon tear is that it’s difficult to remain to keep your cardiovascular levels high with an Achilles injury,” Soslowsky said.
“Because you’re not running, you’re not riding a bike, you’re not doing anything for many months, and so even after the tear is healed, there’ll be some time before he’s ready to play at the level that he’s capable of playing.”
Still, for a player of Tatum’s age and physical profile, the early signs are promising. Getting the surgery done so soon after the injury is a rare advantage and could set the tone for a comeback that bucks the trend.
“The fact that he did choose a surgeon and there was availability to operate on him so quickly gives him an excellent shot at an earlier-than-average, high-level athlete return.”
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