An interesting market dropped at FanDuel Sportsbook this past week. Then, some even more interesting news landed on Thursday.
Reports are that Celtics star Jayson Tatum will return from injury on Friday.
On May 12 of last year, toward the end of Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals, Tatum ruptured his right Achilles tendon. He was sidelined for the rest of the playoffs and has not taken the court this season.
But in recent weeks, the rumors of Tatum’s impending return have intensified.
Then, out of nowhere, this:
Now, FanDuel has odds regarding the method of Tatum’s first basket this season, and DraftKings has a few return specials for the Celtics’ superstar:
Jayson Tatum method of first basket in the 2025-26 regular season (FanDuel)
3-point field goal: +190 (bet $10 to win $29 total)
Other: +190 (bet $10 to win $29 total)
Layup: +380 (bet $10 to win $48 total)
Free throw: +470 (bet $10 to win $57 total)
Dunk: +1600 (bet $10 to win $170 total)
Jayson Tatum 2025-25 regular-season return specials (DraftKings)
7+ made 3s in any game: +180 (bet $10 to win $28 total)
40+ points in any game: +550 (bet $10 to win $65 total)
8+ made 3s in any game: +600 (bet $10 to win $70 total)
To record triple-double in any game: +1000 (bet $10 to win $110 total)
50+ points in any game: +5000 (bet $10 to win $510 total)
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Consider this: Entering the season, at several sportsbooks, the Celtics were around +8000 to win the NBA title this season. Those odds likely reflected the absence of Tatum.
However, Boston is currently second in the Eastern Conference standings and has the fourth-best record in the NBA.
Now, their NBA title odds sit at ++800 at FanDuel and +900 at DraftKings, trailing only the Thunder, Nuggets and Spurs at both books.
The best team in the East, the Detroit Pistons, is young and only 4.5 games ahead of the Celtics as of March 6. Conventional wisdom suggests that if Tatum were to return to the court, battle-tested Boston would be favored to get past the Pistons if the two squads were to meet in the postseason.
Tatum is a six-time All-Star and four-time All-NBA first-team selection. He has averaged at least 26 points per game for the Celtics in each of the last five seasons, and helped Boston win an NBA title in 2024.
