Celtics star Jayson Tatum could make season debut on Friday

[p][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/tatum-jayson/t4Y4e7r0/"]Tatum[/a] was upgraded from "out" to "questionable" on [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/boston-celtics/KYD9hVEm/"]Boston[/a]'s official injury report ahead of Friday's game against the [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/dallas-mavericks/YouS3mEC/"]Dallas Mavericks[/a].[/p][embed guid="f75f3d7a-b17f-4120-a720-c39ee5ea9494" url="https://x.com/celtics/status/2029616701927534920?s=20" social-type="twitter" /][p]Tatum has been making steady progress, including practicing with the Celtics' G League affiliate in February, but he and the team had shied away from giving a timeline for his return.[/p][p]Tatum was carried off the court in the fourth quarter of game four of the Celtics' Eastern Conference semi-finals loss to the [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/new-york-knicks/WCNO4nbt/"]New York Knicks[/a] and had surgery on May 13th.[/p][p]He surprised many in September when he said in an interview with NBC's Today Show that he hadn't ruled out a return this season.[/p][embed guid="ca914e01-051c-4b06-bc62-14eb0db9c213" url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ET2iwHkX5zw" social-type="youtube" /][p]The six-time NBA All-Star, who was a member of the USA's Olympic gold medal-winning teams at the Tokyo and Paris Games, has attended most of the team's games this season while continuing a rehab process he called [b]"exhausting."[/b][/p][p]Despite Tatum's absence the Celtics have emerged as contenders with Most Valuable Player contender [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/player/brown-jaylen/l88NjhUb/"]Jaylen Brown[/a] leading the way.[/p][p]They were in second place in the Eastern Conference going into Thursday's games, five games behind the [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/detroit-pistons/UcjMRj6J/"]Detroit Pistons[/a] and 1.5 games ahead of the third-placed New York Knicks.[/p][p]Tatum told "The Pivot" podcast earlier this year that he knew his return could affect the current lineup's chemistry.[/p][p][b]"I haven't played with these guys or with this group, but (the Celtics have) a lot of high-IQ guys out there,"[/b] he said.[b] "So if that did present itself, and if I did come back, we professionals will figure it out."[/b][/p]