Poll: Expectations This Spring For The Team IF Tatum Returns?

[Vermont Green]

The question is based on the assumption that Tatum returns.  But I guess it is up to us to assume if he returns 100%, no minutes restrictions for the playoffs, or something less than this.  I am going to assume that if he does return, he will return at or near 100%.  That means the playoff rotation could look something like this:

White
Brown
Tatum
Vucevic
Queta

Pritchard
Hauser
Garza

All the rest see only garbage time in the playoffs unless there is foul trouble.  Maybe some nights it is Walsh over Garza for some limited minutes or maybe the rotation is limited only to 7.  In any case, I think this is a competitive playoff rotation.

I have no idea how far this team can go though.  They may well have the 2 best players on the court against any east team so based on that, no reason they can't win the east.  That is best case.  Worst case is pretty much what happened last season and vs MIA in 2023.  I don't like doing predictions for superstitious reasons, but I am going to make an exception and vote make it to the finals.  This team has exceeded my expectations all along,

Thinking that he might possibly come back and be 100% seems foolish to me.  I?m not saying he wouldn?t be 100% healthy, just that he won?t be what he was before he got hurt. Not this season, and we?ll see about ever.

But mj comparison someone just made feels about right.  Maybe after a full off season he?ll get close to what he was.

The condition of Tatum is just an assumption for a hypothetical question.  And the assumption I made was at or near 100% by the playoffs. If he is not near 100% or can?t play full minutes, not sure it is smart to bring him back.


I see it as possible he can get to that point but it is no certainty. I am fine if they determine he is not ready.

[ozgod]

Depending on when Tatum gets back, it's entirely possible his arrival would cause more disruption before they manage to integrate him, given his historical high usage and having to adapt to a lesser role. So I would be cautious in anointing him as our savior. It's tough for a guy coming back from a tough injury, trying to fit back into a team that has overachieved all season, and be treated as the Messiah who will take us to the Finals. Our team will ultimately be much better with him back in it but it depends on what version of him we get, and how quickly he can reintegrate. Unfortunately it's not as simple as reactivating him on NBA2K and he comes back with a 95 rating 

If he a) comes back in time to reintegrate; b) is willing to accept a lesser role while he ramps back up; c) is healthy enough to banish any mental demons he might have about relying on his leg again, then he would definitely be a huge asset. Those are three big IFs.

[Kernewek]

My thought is if the Jordan Bulls didn't make the Finals the year he returned mid-season, then it's almost impossible to do.

I'm saying ECF.

This is more or less where I fall - unless Tatum is an absolute supernova in the postseason, I don't know if we make it out of the east.

[Celtics2021]

My thought is if the Jordan Bulls didn't make the Finals the year he returned mid-season, then it's almost impossible to do.

I'm saying ECF.

This is more or less where I fall - unless Tatum is an absolute supernova in the postseason, I don't know if we make it out of the east.

The difference is that the Jordan Bulls were 34-31 when Jordan returned, before going 13-4 after he came back.  So he elevated them from a probable 1st round exit to ECF.  The Celtics are currently the 2-seed through 2/3 of the season, so ECF without Tatum is a reasonable expectation, and would probably come down to matchups in the earlier rounds.  Now, Tatum is also not Jordan, of course, and he is not going to score 55 points 10 days after returning, but I think the more important point is these Celtics are far better than the 95 Bulls were.  The only reason the are not several games ahead of the Knicks is those first three weeks of the season when the team was still figuring itself out.  Over the last 41 games, they have the same record as the Thunder and Spurs and are one game off the Pistons.  Their net rating of 8.4 is far closer to the Pistons at 9.0 than it is the Knicks at 5.8.

So while 95 Jordan > hypothetical 26 Tatum, 26 Tatumless Celtics >> than 95 Jordanless Bulls, and therefore 26 Tatum Celtics > 95 Jordan Bulls.

[Who]

Depending on when Tatum gets back, it's entirely possible his arrival would cause more disruption before they manage to integrate him, given his historical high usage and having to adapt to a lesser role. So I would be cautious in anointing him as our savior. It's tough for a guy coming back from a tough injury, trying to fit back into a team that has overachieved all season, and be treated as the Messiah who will take us to the Finals. Our team will ultimately be much better with him back in it but it depends on what version of him we get, and how quickly he can reintegrate. Unfortunately it's not as simple as reactivating him on NBA2K and he comes back with a 95 rating 

If he a) comes back in time to reintegrate; b) is willing to accept a lesser role while he ramps back up; c) is healthy enough to banish any mental demons he might have about relying on his leg again, then he would definitely be a huge asset. Those are three big IFs.

This.

(1) What level of individual performance Tatum is able to play at.

(2) How his reintroduction to the team alters the dynamics of the team. How he impacts others around him. How he alters ball movement. How Jaylen's role shifts. How the role players roles shift. Could be positive. Could be negative. Most likely it will be a mixed bag of the two with different outcomes (positive or negative) for different players.