Getty Jayson Tatum #0 of the Boston Celtics.
During a recent interview with Taylor Rooks of Bleacher Report, Jayson Tatum shocked the masses when he revealed that he had been dealing with a nagging wrist injury both during the regular season and throughout the playoffs.
“I played with somewhat of a fracture for two months” 🤯
Jayson Tatum opens up about playing through an undisclosed injury during the playoffs in live interview with Taylor Rooks in B/R app
In light of this recent news, this spurned Boston Celtics fans to have their own reactions to knowing Tatum was dealing with a wrist injury.
Some made it a point that Tatum’s wrist injury probably played a role in why he had issues making easy shots during the 2022 NBA Playoffs.
A fractured wrist would explain why Tatum couldn’t finish a layup as the playoffs went on
Others took the information as validation for their long-standing belief that Tatum was playing hurt as the Celtics made their run to the playoffs.
Tatum received plenty of criticism for his performance during the playoffs, particularly during the finals, where he averaged 21.2 points while shooting 36.7 percent from the field and surrendering 3.8 turnovers a game. His wrist injury may or may not explain why his efficiency dwindled as much as it did.
After Tatum detailed what went down with his wrist, a previous clip resurfaced of Tatum wearing a bandage around it during the playoffs.
Tatum Previously Downplayed Wrist Injury
After Tatum talked at length regarding the wrist injury he suffered, Bobby Manning brought up a clip of Tatum wearing what he called a “great, taped out wrap” he bandaged around his wrist following Game 3 against the Milwaukee Bucks in the second round. Tatum assured reporters he was fine.
“My famous trainer, Nick, wrapped my hand up. He’s a little excessive, so that’s why I look like that. I’m alright. I just fell, and it’s to keep the swelling down.”
Evidently, Tatum did not want to make too big a deal out of what had been going on with his wrist. It didn’t help that Tatum was dealing with another injury on top of that.
Tatum Also Dealt With a Shoulder Injury
While the wrist injury was something that fell under the radar, Celtics fans knew Tatum was dealing with a shoulder injury he suffered during Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Miami Heat.
After the game, Tatum went into detail regarding what exactly went wrong with his shoulder during that play.
“My neck got caught in a weird position,” Tatum said. “Obviously, I went down. I felt some pain and discomfort in my neck and down my arm. Went and got it checked on. I started to gain some feeling back, got it checked by the doctors, and decided to give it a go.”
When Tatum met up with reporters during his basketball camp on July 30, 2022, Tatum explained that his shoulders were fine and he should be ready to go when next season starts.
“It was a longer season than I had ever played, but the shoulder feels good, I’ve got enough rest, so my body feels really good,” Tatum told reporters, “You know what works for you, what you may need to change, whether it be something in your strength program or your diet, so I think that just going through things and having that experience, you learn from it.”