Getty Images

Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum will play in Game 3 of their first-round series against the Orlando Magic on Friday. Tatum suffered a right distal radius bone bruise in Game 1 and was listed as questionable leading up to the game.

The Celtics’ Jaylen Brown (right knee posterior impingement) was also listed as questionable, but will play. They will, however, be without Jrue Holiday (right hamstring strain).

On Thursday, during an interview on 98.5 The Sports Hub, Mazzulla said that Tatum is dealing with a “severe bone bruise,” but has “progressively gotten a little bit better each day.”

NBA playoff odds, picks: Luka Dončić, LeBron James expose Timberwolves; Celtics go up 3-0 on Magic

Tatum took a hard fall on his wrist in Boston’s series-opening 103-86 win last Sunday, and as a result, he missed its 109-100 win in Game 2 on Wednesday. 

In the radio interview, Mazzulla said there is “a chance” that Tatum could return on Friday. Mazzulla also claimed that he doesn’t talk to team doctors — this may have been a joke, but it’s genuinely hard to tell with him — and couldn’t say whether Tatum’s injury is something that requires time off to heal.

“All I can tell you is, at the end of the day, he’s doing whatever he can, every minute of the 24 hours to put himself in position to try and be out there on the court,” Mazzulla said. “I trust his process, trust his mindset, trust the people around him that help put him in position and that’s all we can do.”

Wednesday’s win suggested that Boston can manage just fine without Tatum during this series, provided that everybody else is available. The team would have had less margin for error without Tatum and Holiday, though, so Tatum’s availability is welcome news.