‘Thankful for all the love and support’: Tatum posts from hospital after surgery, thanking Celtics fans

BOSTON AP When Jayson Tatum toppled to the court writhing in pain and grabbing at his right foot late in the Celtics Eastern Conference semifinals Tournament loss to the New York Knicks it looked like a potentially season-altering injury Boston s worst fears are now authenticated Tatum had surgery Tuesday to repair a ruptured right Achilles tendon that will sideline him for the remainder of the playoffs the company publicized The Celtics provided details on the extent of Tatum s injury and declared news of the surgery a day after the six-time All-Star went down in the Celtics - Challenge loss to the New York Knicks It puts the hopes of the defending champions repeating and Tatum s playing status for next season in doubt They did not give a timetable for his return but announced a full recovery was expected When Kevin Durant tore his Achilles tendon during the NBA Finals he wound up missing the entire - season The -year-old Tatum is leading the Celtics in points rebounds and assists per battle for the second straight postseason The Knicks lead the Celtics - in their Eastern Conference semifinals series Tournament is in Boston on Wednesday night Tatum was carried off the court with remaining in Monday night s meeting The Celtics had just turned the ball over and as Tatum moved for the loose ball his leg gave out and he went down He buried his face in a towel in obvious pain while grabbing at his leg above the ankle after the noncontact injury Tatum scored points his highest total during these playoffs and one of the best all-round postseason performances of his career before he was hurt The injury was Tatum s second this postseason He missed Encounter of Boston s - first-round series win over Orlando with a bone bruise in his right wrist It was the first time he d missed a playoff meeting in his career Now Tatum s teammates will face a daunting task that inadequate teams before them have pulled off if they want to break an NBA record six-season drought without a repeat champion Teams holding a - lead in the NBA playoffs have gone on to win of the time with only teams in tries ever coming back from the deficit to win the series Obviously we all realize in our heads what this could mean This part of the sport it s tough Celtics center Kristaps Porzingis explained Monday We have to move forward He don t want us to be over here sad and not play our best basketball To become the th club to overcome a - deficit the Celtics will need big performances from a roster that has several players who have dealt with injuries this postseason All-Star Jaylen Brown entered the playoffs dealing with a right knee issue that has slowed him at times Porzingis also has been slowed at times by the lingering effects of a viral illness that sidelined him for stretches in the second half of the regular season Brown noted Monday that his confidence remains high Get ready for the next one Get ready to fight Get ready to come out on our home floor and do what we need to do Brown mentioned That s the goal Still the goal We ve got enough in this locker room So I believe in my guys Regardless of how this series or the rest of the playoffs play out for Boston Tatum s injury likely will alter how the franchise confronts this coming offseason Including this year the Celtics payroll will be over the salary cap and make them a luxury-tax band for the third straight season That means they will be hit with the repeater tax for being over the cap threshold in three out of four seasons Their current payroll for next season is on track to come in around million which would mean a tax bill next year of almost million The combined probable total price tag would be a league record It is unclear whether the club s incoming new ownership will want to keep paying those hefty taxes to maintain the current roster after agreeing to a purchase in March that is expected to have a final price of a minimum of billion Tatum signed an NBA-record five-year contract last July that will begin next season Brown is playing under a five-year million deal that kicked in this season That means that trimming member salary is a possibility ownership could explore this summer And with Tatum possibly missing all of next season it could accelerate the front office s timeline for reworking the current roster with an eye toward the future