Celtics' Tristan Thompson on COVID-19: 'That S--t's No Joke. That Was a Battle'

Tristan Thompson returned to the Boston Celtics on Wednesday after spending the last month on the sidelines after testing positive for COVID-19.

Now he's warning others about his experience with the virus.

 "That s--t's no joke," Thompson told reporters. "That was a battle. I had all the symptoms except losing my taste and smell, so at least I could enjoy my food."

Thompson said he "definitely" plans to get the vaccine as soon as he's eligible.

The Celtics defeated the New York Knicks, 101-99, on Wednesday at TD Garden. Thompson saw 22 minutes off the bench, posting seven points with eight rebounds and three blocks while finishing a team-best plus-24 on the evening.

The 30-year-old's return was an extremely welcomed sight for a Celtics team struggling to find consistency late in the year. At 26-26 following Wednesday's win, Boston remains 10 games back of the Philadelphia 76ers and Brooklyn Nets in the Atlantic Division and is hanging on to seventh place overall in the Eastern Conference.

With Thompson healthy, moving up the standings gets significantly easier. 

He just happened to make clear that returning to 100 percent was by no means an easy task.