San Antonio Spurs, 2012-13
Tattoo percentage: 40% (6 players with tattoos, 9 without)
The Spurs saw their tattoo percentage go down from last year.
Players with tattoos:
DeJuan Blair
Blair has the text “Don’t make excuses make plays” and “Give glory to God” tattooed across his neck and shoulders.
Tim Duncan
A renowned Dungeons and Dragons player, Duncan has a wizard tattooed on his chest and a jester on his back.
Danny Green
Photographer John Webster shared a great photo of Green over the summer that shows his “I Hold My Own” tattoo and the text tattooed over Green’s heart.
Kawhi Leonard
Leonard was 17 when his father was shot and killed. The following year, he added a tattoo in tribute on his right arm, as reported by the LA Times in 2009.
Tracy McGrady
McGrady, who has suffered a lot of criticism from announcers and analysts, has a response on his right shoulder, just below a speeding basketball and his nickname. Against a curled scroll, a poignant bit of scripture: “AND EVERY TONGUE THAT SHALL RISE UP AGAINST THEE IN JUDGEMENT SHALL BE COMDEMNED—ISAIAH 54:17.”
Tony Parker
When Parker and Eva Longoria got married, they both got tattoos of their wedding date. In the aftermath of their breakup, Longoria initially denied having her tattoo of Parker’s jersey number removed, but TMZ reports that she had it removed in 2012.
Players without tattoos:
Aron Baynes
Matt Bonner
Nando De Colo
Boris Diaw
Manu Ginobili
Cory Joseph
Patty Mills
Gary Neal
Tiago Splitter
San Antonio Spurs, 2011-12
Tattoo percentage: 47% (7 players with tattoos, 8 players without tattoos)
The Spurs have one less tattooed players than last year. DeJuan Blair is their only really heavily tattooed player, but the surprise of Tim Duncan’s tattoos and the stressfulness of Stephen Jackson’s tattoos keeps their team remarkable.
Players with tattoos:
James Anderson
Anderson has a tattoo on his left bicep.
DeJuan Blair
A Spurs Talk thread from last year gathers up all of the now-deleted photos from Blair’s twitter feed of his tattoos, including the incredible ones on his hands.
Tim Duncan
A renowned Dungeons and Dragons player, Duncan has a wizard tattooed on his chest and a jester on his back.
Danny Green
Green has tattoos on both arms.
Stephen Jackson
Proud owner of one of the most hectic tattoos in the league: the standard praying hands on his stomach, but in this design the hands cradle an automatic handgun. When asked about the tattoo’s significance, Jackson explained the design is literal: “I pray I never have to use it again.”
Kawhi Leonard
Leonard has a pretty elaborate cross design on his right shoulder.
Tony Parker
When Parker and Eva Longoria got married, they both got tattoos of their wedding date. In the aftermath of their breakup, Longoria initially denied having her tattoo of Parker’s jersey number removed, but TMZ reports that she had it removed this year.
Players without tattoos:
Matt Bonner
Justin Dentmon
Boris Diaw
Manu Ginobili
Cory Joseph
Patty Mills
Gary Neal
Tiago Splitter
No longer on roster:
Eric Dawson: no tattoos
T.J. Ford: no tattoos
Charlotte Bobcats 2010-2011
Tattoo percentage: 47% (7 players with tattoos, 8 without)
Did you know that Michael Jordan has a brand? It’s hard to make out in photos, but he has a Greek letter burned into his chest to represent his fraternity, Omega Psi Phi. In my imagination, Jordan is weird and competitive enough that this is an issue for players on the Bobcats, who have less tattooed players than most of the league. Even their tattooed players feel toned down compared to other teams, with the obvious exceptions of Stephen Jackson and Tyrus Thomas.
—
Players with tattoos:
D.J. Augustin
Has a touching tribute to his deceased grandmother tattooed on his back. A pair of hands hold a basketball beside the text “thanks for the rock” to memorialize his first ball, which was purchased by his grandmother for his fifth birthday.
Kwame Brown
Has a tattoo below his right elbow.
Dante Cunningham
As of his senior year of college (2009), Cunningham has nine tattoos, including one that reads “TROUBLE” on his left arm.
Stephen Jackson
Proud owner of one of the most hectic tattoos in the league: the standard praying hands on his stomach, but in this design the hands cradle an automatic handgun. When asked about the tattoo’s significance, Jackson explained the design was literal: “I pray I never have to use it again.”
Dominic McGuire
It’s tough to get a good look at McGuire’s open hands tattoo on his right bicep, but it looks incredible.
Joel Przybilla
Among his several tattoos are a basketball player on his right bicep accompanied by the text “Not in my house” and his wife’s name in a heart with roses.
Tyrus Thomas
Easily the most heavily tattooed players on the Bobcats, Thomas admits to disliking his first tattoo: “The name was just like the first one. I think a lot of people usually get their name as the first one. If I could do it over I wouldn’t. You know, I know my name.”
Players without tattoos:
Matt Carroll
Boris Diaw
DeSagana Diop
Gerald Henderson
Shaun Livingston
Eduardo Najera
Garrett Temple
D.J. White
San Antonio Spurs, 2012-13
Tattoo percentage: 40% (6 players with tattoos, 9 without)
The Spurs saw their tattoo percentage go down from last year.
Players with tattoos:
DeJuan Blair
Blair has the text “Don’t make excuses make plays” and “Give glory to God” tattooed across his neck and shoulders.
Tim Duncan
A renowned Dungeons and Dragons player, Duncan has a wizard tattooed on his chest and a jester on his back.
Danny Green
Photographer John Webster shared a great photo of Green over the summer that shows his “I Hold My Own” tattoo and the text tattooed over Green’s heart.
Kawhi Leonard
Leonard was 17 when his father was shot and killed. The following year, he added a tattoo in tribute on his right arm, as reported by the LA Times in 2009.
Tracy McGrady
McGrady, who has suffered a lot of criticism from announcers and analysts, has a response on his right shoulder, just below a speeding basketball and his nickname. Against a curled scroll, a poignant bit of scripture: “AND EVERY TONGUE THAT SHALL RISE UP AGAINST THEE IN JUDGEMENT SHALL BE COMDEMNED—ISAIAH 54:17.”
Tony Parker
When Parker and Eva Longoria got married, they both got tattoos of their wedding date. In the aftermath of their breakup, Longoria initially denied having her tattoo of Parker’s jersey number removed, but TMZ reports that she had it removed in 2012.
Players without tattoos:
Aron Baynes
Matt Bonner
Nando De Colo
Boris Diaw
Manu Ginobili
Cory Joseph
Patty Mills
Gary Neal
Tiago Splitter
San Antonio Spurs, 2011-12
Tattoo percentage: 47% (7 players with tattoos, 8 players without tattoos)
The Spurs have one less tattooed players than last year. DeJuan Blair is their only really heavily tattooed player, but the surprise of Tim Duncan’s tattoos and the stressfulness of Stephen Jackson’s tattoos keeps their team remarkable.
Players with tattoos:
James Anderson
Anderson has a tattoo on his left bicep.
DeJuan Blair
A Spurs Talk thread from last year gathers up all of the now-deleted photos from Blair’s twitter feed of his tattoos, including the incredible ones on his hands.
Tim Duncan
A renowned Dungeons and Dragons player, Duncan has a wizard tattooed on his chest and a jester on his back.
Danny Green
Green has tattoos on both arms.
Stephen Jackson
Proud owner of one of the most hectic tattoos in the league: the standard praying hands on his stomach, but in this design the hands cradle an automatic handgun. When asked about the tattoo’s significance, Jackson explained the design is literal: “I pray I never have to use it again.”
Kawhi Leonard
Leonard has a pretty elaborate cross design on his right shoulder.
Tony Parker
When Parker and Eva Longoria got married, they both got tattoos of their wedding date. In the aftermath of their breakup, Longoria initially denied having her tattoo of Parker’s jersey number removed, but TMZ reports that she had it removed this year.
Players without tattoos:
Matt Bonner
Justin Dentmon
Boris Diaw
Manu Ginobili
Cory Joseph
Patty Mills
Gary Neal
Tiago Splitter
No longer on roster:
Eric Dawson: no tattoos
T.J. Ford: no tattoos
Charlotte Bobcats 2010-2011
Tattoo percentage: 47% (7 players with tattoos, 8 without)
Did you know that Michael Jordan has a brand? It’s hard to make out in photos, but he has a Greek letter burned into his chest to represent his fraternity, Omega Psi Phi. In my imagination, Jordan is weird and competitive enough that this is an issue for players on the Bobcats, who have less tattooed players than most of the league. Even their tattooed players feel toned down compared to other teams, with the obvious exceptions of Stephen Jackson and Tyrus Thomas.
—
Players with tattoos:
D.J. Augustin
Has a touching tribute to his deceased grandmother tattooed on his back. A pair of hands hold a basketball beside the text “thanks for the rock” to memorialize his first ball, which was purchased by his grandmother for his fifth birthday.
Kwame Brown
Has a tattoo below his right elbow.
Dante Cunningham
As of his senior year of college (2009), Cunningham has nine tattoos, including one that reads “TROUBLE” on his left arm.
Stephen Jackson
Proud owner of one of the most hectic tattoos in the league: the standard praying hands on his stomach, but in this design the hands cradle an automatic handgun. When asked about the tattoo’s significance, Jackson explained the design was literal: “I pray I never have to use it again.”
Dominic McGuire
It’s tough to get a good look at McGuire’s open hands tattoo on his right bicep, but it looks incredible.
Joel Przybilla
Among his several tattoos are a basketball player on his right bicep accompanied by the text “Not in my house” and his wife’s name in a heart with roses.
Tyrus Thomas
Easily the most heavily tattooed players on the Bobcats, Thomas admits to disliking his first tattoo: “The name was just like the first one. I think a lot of people usually get their name as the first one. If I could do it over I wouldn’t. You know, I know my name.”
Players without tattoos:
Matt Carroll
Boris Diaw
DeSagana Diop
Gerald Henderson
Shaun Livingston
Eduardo Najera
Garrett Temple
D.J. White
