Jayson Tatumleaned on family during one of the toughest times in his career.
TheBoston Celtics' six-time All-Star's rightAchilles tendon rupturedduring Game 4 of the NBA Eastern Conference semifinals against theNew York Knickson May 12, 2025.
Tatum mentioned that he stayed at his mom's house during a part of his recovery.
"She's set a good foundation for my life and helped me become the basketball player that I am," Tatum told USA TODAY. "To have her be a part of the off-the-court things that I'm doing is important."
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His injury kept him away from live-game action for nearly 300 days before he was cleared and ready to return.
His mom recentlyjoined him in a March Madness commercialfor AT&T. The commercial showed Tatum on a video call with his mother while a small child, meant to play the role of his son Deuce, dunks on a toy basketball hoop for the first time.
"It was all about sharing special moments with my family," Tatum said, "I think it went really well."
The commercial also allowed him to reflect on his first time he was able to dunk a basketball during a middle school game in St. Louis.
Inhis return to NBA action, Tatum recorded a double-double in his season debut as theCelticsearned a 120-100 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on March 6.
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His first dunk attempt upon returning wasn't as easy. Tatum was still testing out what he could do in a live-game situation and had one of his attempts denied by the rim.
Tatum had a slow start in the first half after being introduced and welcomed back by the Boston crowd.
He went 2-for-8 from the field for five points. He also had five rebounds and five assists.
The NBA champion produced the points in the final moments of the second quarter, bringing the crowd to their feet with a putback dunk and a three-pointer on the following possession.
He had 15 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists in front of the Boston fans at the TD Garden.
"Hey, I'm back," Tatum said about his mindset for coming back. "Let's continue where we left off. Our goal is to win a championship."
The forward has nearly produced a double-double in the five games he's played in since his return. He's averaging 20 points, 8.2 rebounds and 4.4 assists.
Jaylen Brown and the Celtics went 41-21 to start the season with Tatum out of the lineup. Boston has put together a 4-2 record since Tatum's return.
"I couldn't be more proud of this team for the way they attacked the season and how they went about it to be the second or third seed in the Eastern Conference," Tatum added.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Jayson Tatum leaned on family during injury rehab, return to Celtics