Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum is helped off the court by after suffering an Achilles injury against the New York Knicks. |
Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
After he suffered a catastrophic Achilles rupture May 12 against the New York Knicks, Boston Celtics superstar Jayson Tatum needed a few words of encouragement. His dad, Justin Tatum, also offered his son words of wisdom.
According to Marc J. Spears of Andscape, the elder Tatum, who is in South Korea coaching Pelita Jaya of the Indonesia Basketball League, called his son to console him. He told him, “Isn’t Kobe your idol? Kobe got through this.” (H/t: NBA Central).
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In a late-season game during the 2013 season, Bryant suffered a torn Achilles tendon that forced him to miss almost all of the following season. Bryant suffered his injury when he was 34. Jayson Tatum is 27.
Bryant was Tatum’s childhood idol. He modeled his game and work ethic after Bryant’s. Now, because of these unfortunate circumstances, Tatum can again look at his idol for guidance.
Tatum underwent surgery in New York shortly after the injury to repair the rupture, similar to Bryant’s injury in 2013. According to Bryant, getting surgery to repair the tendon as soon as possible was vital to his long-term recovery.
After just seven months, Bryant returned to light drills in practice, and after sitting out for eight months, he returned to play. At the time, Bryant was already dealing arthritis in his knees and myriad physical issues that many older athletes deal with. Jayson Tatum is in his prime and expected to fully recover, according to Shams Charania of ESPN.
Also important to mention is the advancements in medical technology over the past decade since Bryant’s injury. Other players, such as Phoenix’s Kevin Durant, have suffered Achilles ruptures and come back to play at an extremely high level.
Jayson Tatum will come back from his injury, but the road to recovery is long. Luckily for him, he can follow in his idol’s footsteps.
Rocky D’Antonio
Rocky D’Antonio is a freelance contributing writer. His interests include the NBA, MLB, the NFL, and especially Formula 1. He has experience writing opinion pieces and beat reporting and is based out of New York City.
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