Philadelphia 76ers, 2012-13
Tattoo percentage: 47% (7 players with tattoos, 8 without)
Despite still being below the league average, the tattoo percentage for the Sixers actually went up from last year.
Players with tattoos:
Kwame Brown
Brown has a tattoo on his left shoulder.
Royal Ivey
Harlem native Ivey has a massive tribute to New York City tattooed on his back.
Arnett Moultrie
Moultrie has tattoos on both arms.
Jason Richardson
A 2010 profile in the Phoenix New Times reported that Richardson has 26 tattoos, including his nickname (THA FACTOR), a grim reaper, the names of his family members, and a figure holding a basketball.
Damien Wilkins
Photographer Janet Klinger made some portraits of Wilkins and his wife that show off the tattoos on his chest and arm.
Dorell Wright
One of the most recognizable of Wright’s many tattoos is the text “G.H.O.S.T.” on his left shoulder. As Wright described to Inked Magazine, “I know that pops out because I see that one on the video games… It’s something me and one of my closest friends thought of, Go Hard Or Stop Trying.”
Nick Young
As described in a 2012 interview for Complex Sports, Young’s most recent tattoo is the text “In Swag We Trust” on his left forearm.
Players without tattoos:
Lavoy Allen
Andrew Bynum
Spencer Hawes
Jrue Holiday: notice that Holiday was listed as having a tattoo for the past two years, based on this photo. I now believe that was an error. Even though his face wasn’t visible, I trusted the caption on this webpage which poked fun at the design. I was further convinced by the fact that the design includes “21” which was Holiday’s jersey number at UCLA. However, revisiting the photo this year, I’m less convinced it’s an image of Holiday, as the number 8 seems visible on the subject’s left bicep, a tattoo I know Holiday doesn’t have. Besides, as an L.A. native, why would he wear a Nationals hat? Finally, a Philadelphia Daily News article about Holiday’s family from February 2013 mentions that tattoos are forbidden by his parents.
Justin Holiday
Charles Jenkins
Evan Turner
Thaddeus Young
Philadelphia 76ers 2011-12
Tattoo percentage: 31% (4 players with tattoos, 9 without)
The 76ers tattoo percentage dropped from last year. Iverson’s presence continues to overshadow the NBA tattoo conversation, which doesn’t have anything to do with the below-average tattoo percentage of the Sixers, but is impossible not to consider. With the exception of Lou Williams, nobody on the team has many tattoos, but in Doug Collins, they do have one of the two tattooed head coaches in the league (the other is Byron Scott).
Players with tattoos:
Tony Battie
An NBA.com chat revealed the backstory of Battie’s Batman logo tattoo: “I did that in college. All the guys used to call me “Bat” or “Big Bat”. I was a leading shotblocker in college, so I was battin’ down those shots, so the Batman thing just came with that.”
Jrue Holiday
It seems the internet has swallowed the photo of Holiday shirtless leaning against a chain link fence. In it, you could see the full back piece with his name and college jersey number (#21).
Andre Iguodala
Iguodala discusses his tattoos in a youtube interview, in which he says he really wants to get them removed, maybe: “I might keep it, but this one I got to take off. I was young when I got these tattoos.”
Lou Williams
Clearly the most tattooed player on the Sixers, Williams seems to have a pretty tricky relationship with tattoos. In 2009 he posted on twitter that he was considering removing most of his tattoos as a sign of his maturity. But he hasn’t gone through with it, and his recent twitter feed shows him enabling other people’s tattoos. As evidenced by a photo posted on twitter, Williams hosted Meek Mill’s first tattoo right in his own home. Seeing that made me weirdly jealous of both of them.
Players without tattoos:
Lavoy Allen
Craig Brackins
Elton Brand
Spencer Hawes
Jodie Meeks
Evan Turner
Nikola Vucevic
Sam Young
Thaddeus Young
No longer on roster:
Andres Nocioni: Has tattoos of a wolf, a bear, and his nickname, according to this article on the website Olé.
Urban Ink Magazine
Evan Turner’s Twitter confession last night had me revisiting Urban Ink Magazine. There’s a whole section of their website that you have to sign up to access, a lot of photos of Waka Flocka Flame and Chad Ochocinco. Not surprisingly, they’ve spent some time with the Denver Nuggets. Here are some highlights:
Al Harrington’s backpiece, featuring a tattoo of himself being carried by an angel. I like imagining that when he gets a new tattoo on his arms or chest he has to have a smaller version added to this one.
J.R. Smith’s right bicep
Kenyon Martin’s disturbing rosary
Philadelphia Sixers, 2010-11
Tattoo percentage: 40% (6 players with tattoos, 9 without)
Obviously the presence of Iverson overshadows any tattoos happening at Wells Fargo Center. Rodman claims the title, but Iverson is the force that brought tattoos to the NBA, even Joakim Noah says so. These days Philadelphia has a below-average number of tattooed players, but they do have something no other team has: a tattooed head coach. As described by a recent Sports Illustrated profile, Doug Collins has a tattoo of his favorite bible verse (Proverbs 3:5-6) and the names of his four grandchildren on his chest.
—
Players with tattoos:
Tony Battie
Because he normally wears a shooter sleeve or even just an arm band (embarrassed?), it’s not really common knowledge that Battie had a tattoo of the Batman logo on his left arm. For an NBA.com chat, he explained the significance of the design: “I did that in college. All the guys used to call me “Bat” or “Big Bat”. I was a leading shotblocker in college, so I was battin’ down those shots, so the Batman thing just came with that.”
Antonio Daniels
The majority of Daniels’ tattoos are tributes to his brother Chris, who died suddenly in his senior year of college. On his left arm, Daniels wears a portrait of his brother meshed with a cross. Inked on his right arm is the dates of his brother’s birth and death, and over his heart, Japanese characters spelling out “In memory of my brother.”
Jrue Holiday
It’s sad that Holiday doesn’t get to wear #21 for the Sixers (it belongs to Thad Young) since he has it tattooed on his back.
Andre Iguodala
Iguodala discusses his tattoos in a youtube interview, which he really wants to get removed, maybe: “I might keep it, but this one I got to take off. I was young when I got these tattoos.”
Andres Nocioni
Nocioni has tattoos of a wolf and a bear, the latter of which is marked with his nickname, Chapu.
Marreese Speights
Speights has several tattoos on his arms, including his mother’s name on his forearm.
Lou Williams
Williams is clearly the most heavily tattooed player on the Sixers, enough so he doesn’t even register his teammates’ work, which I guess, by comparison, is pretty minimal. A 2011 interview saw him claim: “I’m probably the only guy with tattoos on our team, probably the only one with a little edgy personality, and that’s it. Outside of that, I think we’re a pretty square basketball team.”
Players without tattoos:
Craig Brackins
Elton Brand
Spencer Hawes
Jason Kapono
Jodie Meeks
Darius Songalia
Evan Turner
Thaddeus Young
Philadelphia 76ers, 2012-13
Tattoo percentage: 47% (7 players with tattoos, 8 without)
Despite still being below the league average, the tattoo percentage for the Sixers actually went up from last year.
Players with tattoos:
Kwame Brown
Brown has a tattoo on his left shoulder.
Royal Ivey
Harlem native Ivey has a massive tribute to New York City tattooed on his back.
Arnett Moultrie
Moultrie has tattoos on both arms.
Jason Richardson
A 2010 profile in the Phoenix New Times reported that Richardson has 26 tattoos, including his nickname (THA FACTOR), a grim reaper, the names of his family members, and a figure holding a basketball.
Damien Wilkins
Photographer Janet Klinger made some portraits of Wilkins and his wife that show off the tattoos on his chest and arm.
Dorell Wright
One of the most recognizable of Wright’s many tattoos is the text “G.H.O.S.T.” on his left shoulder. As Wright described to Inked Magazine, “I know that pops out because I see that one on the video games… It’s something me and one of my closest friends thought of, Go Hard Or Stop Trying.”
Nick Young
As described in a 2012 interview for Complex Sports, Young’s most recent tattoo is the text “In Swag We Trust” on his left forearm.
Players without tattoos:
Lavoy Allen
Andrew Bynum
Spencer Hawes
Jrue Holiday: notice that Holiday was listed as having a tattoo for the past two years, based on this photo. I now believe that was an error. Even though his face wasn’t visible, I trusted the caption on this webpage which poked fun at the design. I was further convinced by the fact that the design includes “21” which was Holiday’s jersey number at UCLA. However, revisiting the photo this year, I’m less convinced it’s an image of Holiday, as the number 8 seems visible on the subject’s left bicep, a tattoo I know Holiday doesn’t have. Besides, as an L.A. native, why would he wear a Nationals hat? Finally, a Philadelphia Daily News article about Holiday’s family from February 2013 mentions that tattoos are forbidden by his parents.
Justin Holiday
Charles Jenkins
Evan Turner
Thaddeus Young
Philadelphia 76ers 2011-12
Tattoo percentage: 31% (4 players with tattoos, 9 without)
The 76ers tattoo percentage dropped from last year. Iverson’s presence continues to overshadow the NBA tattoo conversation, which doesn’t have anything to do with the below-average tattoo percentage of the Sixers, but is impossible not to consider. With the exception of Lou Williams, nobody on the team has many tattoos, but in Doug Collins, they do have one of the two tattooed head coaches in the league (the other is Byron Scott).
Players with tattoos:
Tony Battie
An NBA.com chat revealed the backstory of Battie’s Batman logo tattoo: “I did that in college. All the guys used to call me “Bat” or “Big Bat”. I was a leading shotblocker in college, so I was battin’ down those shots, so the Batman thing just came with that.”
Jrue Holiday
It seems the internet has swallowed the photo of Holiday shirtless leaning against a chain link fence. In it, you could see the full back piece with his name and college jersey number (#21).
Andre Iguodala
Iguodala discusses his tattoos in a youtube interview, in which he says he really wants to get them removed, maybe: “I might keep it, but this one I got to take off. I was young when I got these tattoos.”
Lou Williams
Clearly the most tattooed player on the Sixers, Williams seems to have a pretty tricky relationship with tattoos. In 2009 he posted on twitter that he was considering removing most of his tattoos as a sign of his maturity. But he hasn’t gone through with it, and his recent twitter feed shows him enabling other people’s tattoos. As evidenced by a photo posted on twitter, Williams hosted Meek Mill’s first tattoo right in his own home. Seeing that made me weirdly jealous of both of them.
Players without tattoos:
Lavoy Allen
Craig Brackins
Elton Brand
Spencer Hawes
Jodie Meeks
Evan Turner
Nikola Vucevic
Sam Young
Thaddeus Young
No longer on roster:
Andres Nocioni: Has tattoos of a wolf, a bear, and his nickname, according to this article on the website Olé.
Urban Ink Magazine
Evan Turner’s Twitter confession last night had me revisiting Urban Ink Magazine. There’s a whole section of their website that you have to sign up to access, a lot of photos of Waka Flocka Flame and Chad Ochocinco. Not surprisingly, they’ve spent some time with the Denver Nuggets. Here are some highlights:
Al Harrington’s backpiece, featuring a tattoo of himself being carried by an angel. I like imagining that when he gets a new tattoo on his arms or chest he has to have a smaller version added to this one.
J.R. Smith’s right bicep
Kenyon Martin’s disturbing rosary
Philadelphia Sixers, 2010-11
Tattoo percentage: 40% (6 players with tattoos, 9 without)
Obviously the presence of Iverson overshadows any tattoos happening at Wells Fargo Center. Rodman claims the title, but Iverson is the force that brought tattoos to the NBA, even Joakim Noah says so. These days Philadelphia has a below-average number of tattooed players, but they do have something no other team has: a tattooed head coach. As described by a recent Sports Illustrated profile, Doug Collins has a tattoo of his favorite bible verse (Proverbs 3:5-6) and the names of his four grandchildren on his chest.
—
Players with tattoos:
Tony Battie
Because he normally wears a shooter sleeve or even just an arm band (embarrassed?), it’s not really common knowledge that Battie had a tattoo of the Batman logo on his left arm. For an NBA.com chat, he explained the significance of the design: “I did that in college. All the guys used to call me “Bat” or “Big Bat”. I was a leading shotblocker in college, so I was battin’ down those shots, so the Batman thing just came with that.”
Antonio Daniels
The majority of Daniels’ tattoos are tributes to his brother Chris, who died suddenly in his senior year of college. On his left arm, Daniels wears a portrait of his brother meshed with a cross. Inked on his right arm is the dates of his brother’s birth and death, and over his heart, Japanese characters spelling out “In memory of my brother.”
Jrue Holiday
It’s sad that Holiday doesn’t get to wear #21 for the Sixers (it belongs to Thad Young) since he has it tattooed on his back.
Andre Iguodala
Iguodala discusses his tattoos in a youtube interview, which he really wants to get removed, maybe: “I might keep it, but this one I got to take off. I was young when I got these tattoos.”
Andres Nocioni
Nocioni has tattoos of a wolf and a bear, the latter of which is marked with his nickname, Chapu.
Marreese Speights
Speights has several tattoos on his arms, including his mother’s name on his forearm.
Lou Williams
Williams is clearly the most heavily tattooed player on the Sixers, enough so he doesn’t even register his teammates’ work, which I guess, by comparison, is pretty minimal. A 2011 interview saw him claim: “I’m probably the only guy with tattoos on our team, probably the only one with a little edgy personality, and that’s it. Outside of that, I think we’re a pretty square basketball team.”
Players without tattoos:
Craig Brackins
Elton Brand
Spencer Hawes
Jason Kapono
Jodie Meeks
Darius Songalia
Evan Turner
Thaddeus Young
