Celtics star forward Jason Tatum sidelined for 16 months from Achilles tendon surgery and says he’s fully healthy as the team enters the first week of training camp, reports Associated Press Kyle Hightower.
“I feel great about spending this offseason getting stronger” he said. “Be more explosive and just work your body all the way through. So, obviously, I’m feeling a lot better than this time last year, and I’m excited and thankful for that.”
with Jaylen Brown out of the picture, Tatum is now the team’s undisputed leader.
“Yes, very comfortable. This is the 10th year” Tatum said. “Leadership is a lot of different things. Awareness is the biggest one. Self-awareness, group awareness. And just understanding that we all have roles and we’re just in this together. So it looks different from person to person.”
Here’s more from the Atlantic Division:
- New Celtics center Mitchell Robinson starts well or comes off the bench for his new team, Keith Smith tweets. Robinson also noted that he is working hard on his biggest weakness, saying that he has taken “a lot” of free throws in the offseason. Robinson is a 50.8% shooter from the line. In an interview with “CP The Franchise,” Robinson revealed that his minutes will not be restricted at the start of the season (video link). “I’ll be able to play back-to-back, so I’m really excited about that. It’s been a long time coming.” he said. “Now I can go out and play basketball and not worry about not playing the game. Just go out there with a free mind and just play.”
- no wonder Predators forward Kawhi Leonard declined to answer questions about the league’s punishment of him and his previous team, the Clippers, following a lengthy league investigation that determined the club violated salary cap rules, per Josh Levenberg of TSN Sports (Twitter link). Leonard was fined $700,000, but not suspended. “I’m very happy to be here … I think the best decision is to move forward … (The investigation) has already been a distraction for the last 70 days … I just want to talk about the Toronto Raptors.” he said during team media day. Leonard led the Raptors to their lone championship before being traded to the Clippers in free agency. He was traded back to Toronto this offseason, though the move was not made official until the investigation was completed. “A big part of it was the fans, the legacy, we’re doing the impossible here” he said of returning to Toronto. “Just the energy of the city. I loved it… The energy and the people are what made me want to come back.”
- Ex Nix assistant coach Daisuke Yoshimoto joined to Sixers as assistant coach and chief video coordinator, BasketNews relay. From 2020-2025, Yoshimoto held various coaching and player development positions in New York.