Duke University officially announced: Tatum serves as basketball operations director and is expected to return in March next year

Duke University, a traditional NCAA school, officially announced that Celtics star Tatum has been appointed as the team’s director of basketball operations. He will serve as a special advisor to Duke University head coach Jon Sheyer, finding a “part-time job” for himself while recuperating from injuries.

In Game 4 of the Eastern Conference semifinals on May 13, Tatum suffered a rupture of his right Achilles tendon without confrontation. Such a serious injury is expected to take 9-12 months to recover. Due to Tatum's serious injury, the Celtics sent away Holiday and Porzingis in successive trades this summer, and also let go of Horford. Naturally, they tried to cut the team's expenses as much as possible when Tatum was unable to play.

Now that Tatum has been appointed as the director of basketball operations by Duke University, he will serve as a special advisor to Duke head coach Jon Sheyer, which will undoubtedly allow Tatum to continue to play his role in other ways when he is not playing.

As for Tatum, he joined Duke University in 2016, but only attended for one year before participating in the NBA draft and landing in the NBA. In Tatum's freshman season at Duke, he averaged 16.8 points, 7.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game.

According to previous US media reports, Tatum's recovery is faster than expected, and he is initially expected to return in March 2026.

(Text/Drunk Wo Fu Sheng)