Achilles tendon rupture! The "Kill-resistant" operation was successful. Can the KD recovery miracle be reproduced?

On May 14, the Celtics officially announced that team forward Jason Tatum has successfully undergone a rupture repair surgery for right Achilles tendon, and the recovery period is expected to be 9 to 12 months.

Go back to the fourth quarter game against the Knicks on May 13, Tatum fell to the ground with a sudden injury without a confrontation. He looked painful and his right ankle was tightly covered with his hands. Afterwards, he was helped up by the team doctor, but his right foot could not land. He could only sit in a wheelchair and was pushed back to the locker room. At that time, based on Tatum's injury, sports experts analyzed that it was very likely that the Achilles tendon was ruptured.

Tatum's injury was officially confirmed to be a ruptured Achilles tendon on Tuesday morning local time. Given that rapid treatment measures after Achilles tendon injury can often bring more ideal treatment results, the team decided to arrange the surgery for him immediately. The operation was conducted locally in New York. As we all know, it is common to have complications during the operation. However, when Tatum recovered from the operation without any other problems, the Celtics were encouraged.

Celtics said that Tatum is expected to achieve a full recovery, but has not given a specific timetable for his return to the field. The team promises that if there is any further news, it will be announced to the public in a timely manner. Generally speaking, players who suffer from such injuries need to be on standby for about a season.

Since entering the NBA in 2017, Tatum has played as many as 706 games in the regular season and playoffs, a number that ranks first in the league and is known as the "King of Death". He has been the leader in total score, rebounds and assists for the Celtics over the past two years of playoff journey. Especially in the 2024 finals, he helped the team successfully win the championship.

It is worth mentioning that Tatum is the sixth player this season to suffer a laceration of Achilles tendon. Previously, Dezante Murray, Damian Lillard, Isaiah Jackson, Drew Smith and rookie Darren Holmes II all suffered such injuries this season.

Achilles tendon tear is undoubtedly an extremely serious injury, and there are very few cases where it can fully recover. Among them, the most well-known successful recovery cases are Wilkins and Durant. Tatum's injury recovery can be referred to Durant, after all, both of them are treated under modern medical conditions. Moreover, Tatum's surgery was performed very promptly, and he is currently only 27 years old. In theory, the recovery speed should be faster, and it may even be better than Durant. However, this requires him to perform corresponding exercises, otherwise the consequences will be unimaginable once muscle atrophy occurs. In this regard, you can also refer to Durant's recovery process.

Tatum is a player who relies heavily on physical fitness to play. In the game, he often scores by quickly starting the attack inside. In comparison, his shooting skills are much worse than Durant. Moreover, he does not have the height and arm length advantage that Durant has. Even if he can fully recover, it is not easy to adapt to the rapid and changeable style of modern basketball, let alone return to his current peak state. However, his only advantage is that he is still young. As long as he can recover about 80% of his strength, he can continue to fight in the league for a few years. But it cannot be ignored that he may continue to suffer from injuries of all sizes in the later stages, and it is extremely difficult to surpass the achievements made by his predecessors.