Jayson Tatum Odds: Will Celtics superstar return this season?

An interesting market went down on FanDuel betting this week – what it suggests Celtics star Jayson Tatum will return from injury during the regular season.

On May 12 of last year, near the end of Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals, Tatum ruptured his right Achilles tendon. He sat out the rest of the playoffs and did not play this season.

But in recent weeks, rumors of Tatum’s imminent return have intensified, with reporters even asking Celtics coach Joe Mazzula if Tatum is working out.

As the rumors continue to swirl, FanDuel has released the odds regarding the method of Tatum’s first basket of the season:

Jayson Tatum’s first basket in the 2025-26 regular season

3 game points: +190 (bet $10 to win $29 total)
Other: +190 (bet $10 to win $29 total)
Laying: +380 (bet $10 to win $48 total)
Freeroll: +470 (bet $10 to win $57 total)
Slam: +1600 (bet $10 to win $170 total)

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If Tatum doesn’t play this season, of course, all bets are off. But all signs point to him potentially making a comeback.

Consider this: Entering the season, at several sportsbooks, the Celtics were around +8000 to win the NBA title this season. Those odds likely reflected Tatum’s absence.

However, Boston is currently second in the Eastern Conference standings and has the fourth best record in the NBA.

Now, their NBA title odds are at +1200 on FanDuel, trailing only the Thunder, Nuggets and Spurs.

The top team in the East, the Detroit Pistons, are young and only five games ahead of the Celtics as of February 24th. Conventional wisdom suggests that if Tatum were to return to the court, battle-tested Boston would be favored to get past the Pistons if these two teams met in the postseason.

Tatum recently worked out with Boston’s G-League affiliate, the Maine Celtics, and now he’s back practicing with the Celtics, even participating in some 5-on-5 drills, which he revealed to the press this week.

Tatum is a six-time All-Star and four-time All-NBA First Team. He averaged at least 26 points per game for the Celtics in each of the last five seasons and helped Boston win the 2024 NBA title.