When forward Jayson Tatum ruptured his Achilles against the New York Knicks in the second round of the NBA playoffs last May, the injury cost the Boston Celtics a chance to win the 2024-25 NBA championship. It will prevent the Celtics from winning the 2025-26 championship as well.

Without Tatum, 27, Boston doesn’t have enough talent on its roster to make a serious run at this season’s title.

Tatum, a six-time NBA All-Star who led the Celtics to the 2024 championship, has averaged 23.6 points, 7.4 rebounds and 3.8 during his NBA career. He’s also a team leader and (sorry Jaylen Brown) the team’s best option when Boston needs a basket late in games. His absence is too much for this team to overcome.

DraftKings lists the Celtics at +6000 to win the 2025-26 NBA championship. There are 14

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