The Boston Celtics were one of the teams thus far this NBA season that has had to deal with a shutdown from COVID-19. Boston had three games postponed between January 10th and January 13th because they did not have the minimum amount of players available to play. One of the players who tested positive was All-Star Jayson Tatum.
Tatum ended up missing five more games on top of the three postponements. Despite that, he is having another strong season averaging 25.6 points, 7.1 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game. However, he is still feeling the aftereffects a month since he tested positive.
Given how young and in shape Jayson Tatum is, there is a misconception that COVID wouldn’t have as much of an impact on him, but that isn’t the case. Tatum admits that is something he is still working on.
“Just running up and down the court a few times, it’s easier to get out of breath or tired a lot faster. I’ve noticed that since I’ve had COVID. It’s just something I’m working on.”
While Tatum has seen an uptick in minutes since his return, as the Celtics are dealing with numerous players being sidelined, his production has dipped slightly.
In the 11 games since returning to the court, Tatum is averaging 24.5 points per game on 42.7 percent from the floor overall and 36.5 percent from the 3-point line. In the 10 games before testing positive, Tatum averaged 26.9 on 47.4 percent overall and 43.8 percent from deep.
While his numbers in the 11 game since are still strong, it is difficult dealing with the inconsistencies with his breathing.
“It’s something that we’ve talked about,” Tatum said. “And it’s not like every game where I feel it the whole game. It’s just certain stretches where breathing is a little out of whack, and I talk to the medical staff and coaching staff about it. It’s gotten better, obviously, from the first game I came back and played.
“I guess it’s just a long process. I’ve talked to other guys that have had it, and they say they experienced the same thing and it kind of just gets better over time. But as much as we play, I guess it takes a little bit longer.”
Hopefully, Jayson Tatum is able to regain his old form and return to full strength sooner than later. While not everyone roots for the Celtics and their players, no one wants to see more people impacted negatively by COVID.
