Jayson Tatum believes the Celtics would’ve beat the Knicks in the NBA playoffs if he hadn’t torn his Achilles

There are several “what if” moments that exist from the NBA playoffs last season. Most of them have to do with what would’ve happened had certain players not gotten injured, like Boston Celtics superstar Jayson Tatum. The All-Star forward suffered a torn Achilles tendon in the second round of the postseason against the New York Knicks, which essentially slammed the door on Boston’s chances of repeating as champions. 

Tatum suffered the injury in the closing minutes of Game 4 with the Knicks well on the their way to taking a 3-1 series lead. But Tatum believes that had he not suffered an Achilles tear, the Celtics could’ve staged a comeback to beat the Knicks.

“I’ve played this in my head a thousand times, what happens if I never got hurt,” Tatum said on ESPN’s First Take. “…I’m not going to say what would’ve happened, but I just know I’ve been down 3-2 on the road three times in my career, and I was 3-0.”

That’s a bold statement to make, but history is on Tatum’s side in that assessment. In 2022, the Celtics were down 3-2 against the defending champion Milwaukee Bucks, and Tatum proceeded to turn in one of his best career performances, dropping 46 points in Game 6 to force a Game 7. The Celtics eventually went on to make the NBA Finals that year.

Tatum certainly shows up in big moments, so there’s no telling what the Celtics would’ve been able to do if he hadn’t gotten hurt. However, the Knicks were just the dominant team all series long, Tatum even said as much. Boston lost the first two games of that series primarily because they shot the ball horrendously from 3-point range. Unless that changed, it didn’t feel like the Celtics were poised to make a comeback.

For as poorly as Boston shot the ball, though, Tatum did his best to will them to wins every time against the Knicks, especially in Game 4 when he dropped 42 points before going down with the Achilles tear.

Looking ahead, the Celtics will have to adjust to life without Tatum for most — if not all — of next season. Typically an Achilles tear keeps players out for an entire season, though Tatum isn’t ruling out a return during the 2025-26 season. Whenever Tatum returns, he’ll be rejoining a Celtics team that looks far different than the one he last suited up for. Boston traded away Kristaps Porzingis and Jrue Holiday, while also losing Al Horford and Luke Kornet this offseason in an effort to trim their luxury tax bill.

It’ll be a significant change in personnel when Tatum returns, but with him and Jaylen Brown still as the franchise centerpieces, the Celtics can retool and remain title contenders when Tatum is fully healthy again.