Jayson Tatum Sends Hometown St. Louis Message During Achilles Tear Recovery

Jayson Tatum will almost certainly miss all of the 2025-26 NBA season due to his Achilles tear and will spend some time in St. Louis.

Jayson Tatum Sends Hometown St. Louis Message During Achilles Tear Recovery

Jayson Tatum (Image via FirstSportz)

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Jayson Tatum has been hell-bent on matching Kobe Bryant in his attempt to recover from an Achilles tear. The Celtics’ franchise player suffered his career altering injury in Game 4 of the second round against the Knicks. Since then, he’s been fast tracked to an operation and has vowed to try and be back on his feet as fast as he can.

Celtics fans, on the other hand, have wanted Tatum to take his foot off the gas pedal in his attempted recovery. It takes an extraordinary amount of goodwill for a team and a fanbase to want a player to slow their recovery process down and take their time before returning to the court for them, and Jayson Tatum has all of that and more in one of the most remarkable 8-year spells we’ve seen from a modern NBA player.

Tatum has made the playoffs every year during his Celtics tenure and has been the team’s best player for six of these eight seasons. He has heartily taken on the role of the franchise player and shouldered the championship burden with pride. The 26-year-old has blossomed into the most complete player in the NBA in this process. Much of this endeavor comes from his upbringing in his hometown of St. Louis.

Tatum grew up in the mean streets of Missouri’s biggest city as the son of a single mother. Living away from his father for extended periods as Justin Tatum played basketball professionally overseas, Tatum had a lot of help and guidance from his local community in Missouri. His mentor and NBA predecessor Bradley Beal also had a huge part to play in bringing him up to speed on the track to basketball stardom.

Tatum’s latest pictures showed him without a walking boot, less than 11 weeks after injuring his Achilles. Now back in his hometown as he begins the long and arduous road to rehabilitation, the six-time All-Star posted a heartfelt tweet thanking his hometown community:

I love St. Louis

Jayson Tatum often receives support from his fellow St. Louis celebrities and the community

Despite not being in the spotlight, Tatum does a lot of help for his St. Louis community. The house where he and his mother Brandy Cole spent his childhood years is now a rent-free home for single mothers in threat of poverty and looking for jobs. His foundation also attracted a $1 million investment to help 100 St Louis residents progress from being renters to owning homes in the area.

Jayson Tatum
Jayson Tatum (Credits: MARCA)

Tatum also joined a consortium looking to bring a WNBA team to St. Louis with a $200 million bid last year. He attends many Cardinals games and has been asked to be the guest throwing the ceremonial first pitch at some of their games during the summer. The product of the local sports powerhouse Chaminade High School alongside 2-time Stanley Cup winner Matthew Tkachuk, Tatum is a pillar in the St. Louis sports community and has been so since being recruited by Duke University as a high school prospect.

Leland Wayne a.ka. Metro Boomin, a fellow St. Louis celebrity and perhaps the biggest hitmaker in southern hip-hop, is one of his most ardent supporters. Metro has been spotted courtside at many Celtics playoff games and has even performed halftime shows during the team’s irresistible 2024 NBA championship run. Matthew Tkachuk, Bradley Beal, Metro Boomin and Jayson Tatum are four young St. Louis stars who are beacons for the youth in the city to look up to and follow their path.

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