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
Oklahoma City Thunder, 2011-12
Tattoo percentage: 53% (8 players with tattoos, 7 without)
It wasn’t that long ago that OKC had a reputation for having the fewest tattooed players in the league. But during the 2011 playoffs, Durant inadvertently revealed the density of tattoos on his stomach, which he followed up with a huge back piece during the offseason. Joined by new tattoos for Eric Maynor and Royal Ivey, the reputation seemed to flip, with OKC emerging as the sixth-most tattooed team in the league last year. With some off-season roster changes, things have relaxed a bit, with the Thunder now meeting the league average for tattoo percentage.
Players with tattoos:
Daequan Cook
Among Cook’s many (10+) tattoos are his daughter’s name and the words “Daddy’s Angel.”
Kevin Durant
During the summer of 2011, Durant had a huge tribute to his home state and his deceased coach tattooed on his back. The design has been referred to as a “business tattoo” since the entire design is hidden by his uniform. A recent interview with the tattoo artist, Randy Harris, revealed that Durant insisted that the tattoo be hidden in this way: “He went out of his way to tell me to not have the tattoos go out of his jersey because he does look at himself as a role model to kids.”
Derek Fisher
Fisher has a couple of Chinese characters tattooed on his right forearm that translate to “to be faithful in heart, mind, and spirit.”
Royal Ivey
Born and raised in New York, Ivey has a full back piece repping the city, with the statue of liberty, the twin towers, and the Queensboro bridge among other landmarks. In a Fanhouse video interview, he explained that “every one of my tattoos means something” and went on to explain the “eye of the beholder” design on his forearm: “you know, ‘beauty is in the eye of the beholder,’ and that’s the man above so that’s why I put it.”
Eric Maynor
Maynor is the third Thunder player to have work done by Randy Harris of Tattoos by Randy. During the summer of 2011, he had his entire right arm filled in by Randy. DailyThunder.com did a great before and after comparison on their site.
Nazr Mohammed
Mohammed has his name tattooed on his left shoulder above a basketball passing through a hoop.
Kendrick Perkins
Perkins wore #43 on his jersey as a high school student and for his seven and a half seasons with the Celtics. At some point during that time, he had the number 43 tattooed on his shoulder. When he was traded to OKC he switched to #5 as 43 had been retired by the Sonics for Jack Sikma. This story makes everyone sad.
Thabo Sefolosha
Sefolosha’s two tattoos read “The Game Chose Me” and “God Guides My Steps.” In an NBA.com profile, he explained the designs: “Those are two things that are very important in my life: basketball and God.”
Players without tattoos:
Cole Aldrich
Nick Collison
James Harden
Lazar Hayward
Serge Ibaka
Reggie Jackson
Russell Westbrook
No longer on roster:
Ryan Reid: has tattoos on both arms.
Anonymous asked: Hello! Any insight into who the artists are who've tattooed many of the NBA players? (Or a list of some of the most famous?) Thanks!
Sure! There are a couple artists who can claim to have tattooed the most NBA players.
The first is Mr. Cartoon, based in Los Angeles. Cartoon is best known for his work with rappers and other musicians—his wikipedia page lists Dr. Dre, 50 Cent, Prodigy, Justin Timberlake and Beyoncé. He’s done tattoos for many of the most notoriously tattooed NBA players, including Amar’e Stoudemire and Carlos Boozer. He’s also done some charity work with LeBron James, but I’m not sure he he’s done any LBJ’s tattoos.
I think the dude that’s responsible for tattooing the most NBA players has to be Randy Harris from Tattoos by Randy, based in Atlanta. His myspace page is an incredible source of photos of NBA players—Marvin Williams, Josh Smith, Jamal Crawford, Carmelo Anthony, Jason Richardson, Quentin Richardson, Shelden Williams. The list is long, I mean, Stephen Jackson actually has his own portfolio. If you check his twitter page, you’ll see a lot of dialogue with NBA players. He and Kevin Durant exchanged a lot of discussion about new designs via twitter last summer, culminating in a photo of Randy and Durant’s massive backpiece. The OKC connection doesn’t stop there, as Randy has also done work for Royal Ivey and Eric Maynor. Randy has also done a lot of work for Monta Ellis, and apparently the two go fishing together as well.
I keep meaning to do a rundown of all of the players Randy has tattooed, but in the meantime I saw today on twitter that iHoopAround will premiere a piece about Tattoos by Randy with input from Durant, Maynor, and Daequan Cook. I’ll post a link when that happens….
Oklahoma City Thunder, 2010-11
Tattoo percentage: 64% (9 players with tattoos, 5 without)
It was only a couple of years ago that the Thunder had a reputation for being the least tattooed team in the league. OKC banner wavers DailyThunder.com addressed their lack of tattoos in two different 2009 columns, the first of which posited fewer tattoos=better players, at least for the Thunder. Granted, the team’s pre-trade starting five of Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, Nenad Krstic, Jeff Green and Thabo Sefolosha had only one visibly tattooed player, but there’s a lot of ink on that team. In fact, since the trade, only six teams have more tattooed players than the Thunder, and the affable, nice guys of Oklahoma City inexplicably have nine tattooed players, which ties them with the Denver Nuggets.
—
Daequan Cook
Among Cook’s many (10+) tattoos are his daughter’s name and the words “Daddy’s Angel.”
Kevin Durant
Durant has a tattoo of his mother’s name, Wanda, on his chest and another design on his wrist. He may not get any more, however, because of the way it feels: “It was like getting pinched for 30 minutes straight. It wasn’t that bad. I don’t think I could take sitting there for two and three hours, just sitting there with them chipping away. That’s too much.”
Royal Ivey
Born and raised in New York, Ivey has a full back piece repping the city, with the statue of liberty, the twin towers, and the Queensboro bridge among other landmarks. In a Fanhouse video interview, he explained that “every one of my tattoos means something” and went on to explain the “eye of the beholder” design on his forearm: “you know, ‘beauty is in the eye of the beholder,’ and that’s the man above so that’s why I put it.”
Eric Maynor
In his senior year at Virginia Commonwealth, Maynor was the topic of a bit of controversy when photos on cover of the VCU media kit showed Maynor with his tattoos airbrushed out. VCU athletic director Norwood Teague explained to the Richmond Times Dispatch that “we try to take them off to present more of an even-keel image” and went on to say that, “we remove them all the time.”
Nazr Mohammed
Mohammed has his name tattooed on his left shoulder above a basketball passing through a hoop.
Byron Mullens
Mullens used go to by BJ Mullens, and has B tattooed on his left forearm and J tattooed on his right forearm. I actually thought this photo was a joke and so I went through and made sure he really had them.
Kendrick Perkins
Perkins has tattoos covering most of his arms, and they are just as opaque and intriguing as he is.
Nate Robinson
Another heavily tattooed Seattle native, Robinson is likely one of the most tattooed in the league, which makes sense, given how early he started: “I was thirteen when I got my first tattoo, and it was the Iverson bulldog because Iverson had it. It says Mr. Robinson at the bottom.”
Thabo Sefolosha
Sefolosha’s two tattoos read “The Game Chose Me” and “God Guides My Steps.” In an NBA.com profile, he explained the designs: “Those are two things that are very important in my life: basketball and God.”
Players without tattoos:
Cole Aldrich
Nick Collison
James Harden
Serge Ibaka
Russell Westbrook
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
Oklahoma City Thunder, 2011-12
Tattoo percentage: 53% (8 players with tattoos, 7 without)
It wasn’t that long ago that OKC had a reputation for having the fewest tattooed players in the league. But during the 2011 playoffs, Durant inadvertently revealed the density of tattoos on his stomach, which he followed up with a huge back piece during the offseason. Joined by new tattoos for Eric Maynor and Royal Ivey, the reputation seemed to flip, with OKC emerging as the sixth-most tattooed team in the league last year. With some off-season roster changes, things have relaxed a bit, with the Thunder now meeting the league average for tattoo percentage.
Players with tattoos:
Daequan Cook
Among Cook’s many (10+) tattoos are his daughter’s name and the words “Daddy’s Angel.”
Kevin Durant
During the summer of 2011, Durant had a huge tribute to his home state and his deceased coach tattooed on his back. The design has been referred to as a “business tattoo” since the entire design is hidden by his uniform. A recent interview with the tattoo artist, Randy Harris, revealed that Durant insisted that the tattoo be hidden in this way: “He went out of his way to tell me to not have the tattoos go out of his jersey because he does look at himself as a role model to kids.”
Derek Fisher
Fisher has a couple of Chinese characters tattooed on his right forearm that translate to “to be faithful in heart, mind, and spirit.”
Royal Ivey
Born and raised in New York, Ivey has a full back piece repping the city, with the statue of liberty, the twin towers, and the Queensboro bridge among other landmarks. In a Fanhouse video interview, he explained that “every one of my tattoos means something” and went on to explain the “eye of the beholder” design on his forearm: “you know, ‘beauty is in the eye of the beholder,’ and that’s the man above so that’s why I put it.”
Eric Maynor
Maynor is the third Thunder player to have work done by Randy Harris of Tattoos by Randy. During the summer of 2011, he had his entire right arm filled in by Randy. DailyThunder.com did a great before and after comparison on their site.
Nazr Mohammed
Mohammed has his name tattooed on his left shoulder above a basketball passing through a hoop.
Kendrick Perkins
Perkins wore #43 on his jersey as a high school student and for his seven and a half seasons with the Celtics. At some point during that time, he had the number 43 tattooed on his shoulder. When he was traded to OKC he switched to #5 as 43 had been retired by the Sonics for Jack Sikma. This story makes everyone sad.
Thabo Sefolosha
Sefolosha’s two tattoos read “The Game Chose Me” and “God Guides My Steps.” In an NBA.com profile, he explained the designs: “Those are two things that are very important in my life: basketball and God.”
Players without tattoos:
Cole Aldrich
Nick Collison
James Harden
Lazar Hayward
Serge Ibaka
Reggie Jackson
Russell Westbrook
No longer on roster:
Ryan Reid: has tattoos on both arms.
Anonymous asked: Hello! Any insight into who the artists are who've tattooed many of the NBA players? (Or a list of some of the most famous?) Thanks!
Sure! There are a couple artists who can claim to have tattooed the most NBA players.
The first is Mr. Cartoon, based in Los Angeles. Cartoon is best known for his work with rappers and other musicians—his wikipedia page lists Dr. Dre, 50 Cent, Prodigy, Justin Timberlake and Beyoncé. He’s done tattoos for many of the most notoriously tattooed NBA players, including Amar’e Stoudemire and Carlos Boozer. He’s also done some charity work with LeBron James, but I’m not sure he he’s done any LBJ’s tattoos.
I think the dude that’s responsible for tattooing the most NBA players has to be Randy Harris from Tattoos by Randy, based in Atlanta. His myspace page is an incredible source of photos of NBA players—Marvin Williams, Josh Smith, Jamal Crawford, Carmelo Anthony, Jason Richardson, Quentin Richardson, Shelden Williams. The list is long, I mean, Stephen Jackson actually has his own portfolio. If you check his twitter page, you’ll see a lot of dialogue with NBA players. He and Kevin Durant exchanged a lot of discussion about new designs via twitter last summer, culminating in a photo of Randy and Durant’s massive backpiece. The OKC connection doesn’t stop there, as Randy has also done work for Royal Ivey and Eric Maynor. Randy has also done a lot of work for Monta Ellis, and apparently the two go fishing together as well.
I keep meaning to do a rundown of all of the players Randy has tattooed, but in the meantime I saw today on twitter that iHoopAround will premiere a piece about Tattoos by Randy with input from Durant, Maynor, and Daequan Cook. I’ll post a link when that happens….
Oklahoma City Thunder, 2010-11
Tattoo percentage: 64% (9 players with tattoos, 5 without)
It was only a couple of years ago that the Thunder had a reputation for being the least tattooed team in the league. OKC banner wavers DailyThunder.com addressed their lack of tattoos in two different 2009 columns, the first of which posited fewer tattoos=better players, at least for the Thunder. Granted, the team’s pre-trade starting five of Russell Westbrook, Kevin Durant, Nenad Krstic, Jeff Green and Thabo Sefolosha had only one visibly tattooed player, but there’s a lot of ink on that team. In fact, since the trade, only six teams have more tattooed players than the Thunder, and the affable, nice guys of Oklahoma City inexplicably have nine tattooed players, which ties them with the Denver Nuggets.
—
Daequan Cook
Among Cook’s many (10+) tattoos are his daughter’s name and the words “Daddy’s Angel.”
Kevin Durant
Durant has a tattoo of his mother’s name, Wanda, on his chest and another design on his wrist. He may not get any more, however, because of the way it feels: “It was like getting pinched for 30 minutes straight. It wasn’t that bad. I don’t think I could take sitting there for two and three hours, just sitting there with them chipping away. That’s too much.”
Royal Ivey
Born and raised in New York, Ivey has a full back piece repping the city, with the statue of liberty, the twin towers, and the Queensboro bridge among other landmarks. In a Fanhouse video interview, he explained that “every one of my tattoos means something” and went on to explain the “eye of the beholder” design on his forearm: “you know, ‘beauty is in the eye of the beholder,’ and that’s the man above so that’s why I put it.”
Eric Maynor
In his senior year at Virginia Commonwealth, Maynor was the topic of a bit of controversy when photos on cover of the VCU media kit showed Maynor with his tattoos airbrushed out. VCU athletic director Norwood Teague explained to the Richmond Times Dispatch that “we try to take them off to present more of an even-keel image” and went on to say that, “we remove them all the time.”
Nazr Mohammed
Mohammed has his name tattooed on his left shoulder above a basketball passing through a hoop.
Byron Mullens
Mullens used go to by BJ Mullens, and has B tattooed on his left forearm and J tattooed on his right forearm. I actually thought this photo was a joke and so I went through and made sure he really had them.
Kendrick Perkins
Perkins has tattoos covering most of his arms, and they are just as opaque and intriguing as he is.
Nate Robinson
Another heavily tattooed Seattle native, Robinson is likely one of the most tattooed in the league, which makes sense, given how early he started: “I was thirteen when I got my first tattoo, and it was the Iverson bulldog because Iverson had it. It says Mr. Robinson at the bottom.”
Thabo Sefolosha
Sefolosha’s two tattoos read “The Game Chose Me” and “God Guides My Steps.” In an NBA.com profile, he explained the designs: “Those are two things that are very important in my life: basketball and God.”
Players without tattoos:
Cole Aldrich
Nick Collison
James Harden
Serge Ibaka
Russell Westbrook
