Indiana Pacers, 2012-13
Tattoo percentage: 40% (6 players with tattoos, 9 without)
The Pacers saw their tattoo percentage drop from last year.
Players with tattoos:
D.J. Augustin
On Augustin’s back is a touching tribute to his deceased grandmother in which 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. The design is pretty awe-inspiring.
Paul George
George added two new tattoos last summer. As he described to ESPN: “I got two tattoos: one of a lion on one hand, and one of a tiger on the other hand. They are my favorite animals, and they represent who I feel I am on the court. They are silent, but they are beasts.”
Gerald Green
Green has a tattoo representing his hometown with a city skyline and the word “Houston” on his forearm.
George Hill
In May of 2011, Hill posted a photo of a new tattoo on his twitter page. The design features the state of Indiana with a star emerging from Hill’s birthplace, Indianapolis. In June of 2011, Hill was traded from the Spurs to the Pacers. Homecoming!
Lance Stephenson
Playing in a summer league at the age of 15, Stephenson so impressed Bobbito Garcia that Bobbito gave him the nickname “Born Ready,” citing the young guard’s ability to go up against older players, even NBA players. Stephenson had the nickname tattooed on his shoulder alongside the skyline of Coney Island, where he grew up.
David West
Among West’s several tattoos are the words “Carpe Diem” tattooed on the backs of his calves.
Players without tattoos:
Danny Granger
Ben Hansbrough
Tyler Hansbrough
Roy Hibbert
Orlando Johnson
Ian Mahinmi
Jeff Pendergraph
Miles Plumlee
Sam 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.
Memphis Grizzlies, 2010-11
Tattoo percentage: 36% (5 players with tattoos, 9 without)
A lot of talk about how the Grizzlies came out of nowhere in these playoffs. Definitely watching them take out the Spurs was the best story of the first round, and on a personal level, having watched Z-Bo in Portland and in New York, I’m happy to see him playing so well. Anyway, I guess “out of nowhere” means “there aren’t a lot of photos of them on the internet” because I really can’t find great evidence or images of their tattoos. Sorry.
—
Players with tattoos:
Darrell Arthur
Arthur has tattoos on both shoulders and a “King Arthur” backpiece.
Mike Conley
Conley has a tattoo on his left shoulder.
Hamed Haddadi
On Haddadi’s left shoulder is a stylized dragon.
O.J. Mayo
“Juice Monster” is a crazy tattoo, even if it was Mayo’s childhood nickname. His “dedication” and “sacrifice” bicep tattoos are meaningful, but it’s his King Kong design that speaks the most: “I’d like that to be my motto; I’m King Kong of the court,” he said in a 2007 interview.
Zach Randolph
Randolph has tattoos on both arms. Nike had him pose with a sword once.
Players without tattoos:
Tony Allen
Shane Battier: Asked he ever wanted a tattoo, Battier confessed, “No. You know what, I’m not cool enough to pull it off. If I got one it’d be really dorky — it would look funny on me.”
Marc Gasol
Rudy Gay
Xavier Henry
Leon Powe
Ishmael Smith
Greivis Vasquez
Sam Young
Indiana Pacers, 2012-13
Tattoo percentage: 40% (6 players with tattoos, 9 without)
The Pacers saw their tattoo percentage drop from last year.
Players with tattoos:
D.J. Augustin
On Augustin’s back is a touching tribute to his deceased grandmother in which 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. The design is pretty awe-inspiring.
Paul George
George added two new tattoos last summer. As he described to ESPN: “I got two tattoos: one of a lion on one hand, and one of a tiger on the other hand. They are my favorite animals, and they represent who I feel I am on the court. They are silent, but they are beasts.”
Gerald Green
Green has a tattoo representing his hometown with a city skyline and the word “Houston” on his forearm.
George Hill
In May of 2011, Hill posted a photo of a new tattoo on his twitter page. The design features the state of Indiana with a star emerging from Hill’s birthplace, Indianapolis. In June of 2011, Hill was traded from the Spurs to the Pacers. Homecoming!
Lance Stephenson
Playing in a summer league at the age of 15, Stephenson so impressed Bobbito Garcia that Bobbito gave him the nickname “Born Ready,” citing the young guard’s ability to go up against older players, even NBA players. Stephenson had the nickname tattooed on his shoulder alongside the skyline of Coney Island, where he grew up.
David West
Among West’s several tattoos are the words “Carpe Diem” tattooed on the backs of his calves.
Players without tattoos:
Danny Granger
Ben Hansbrough
Tyler Hansbrough
Roy Hibbert
Orlando Johnson
Ian Mahinmi
Jeff Pendergraph
Miles Plumlee
Sam 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.
Memphis Grizzlies, 2010-11
Tattoo percentage: 36% (5 players with tattoos, 9 without)
A lot of talk about how the Grizzlies came out of nowhere in these playoffs. Definitely watching them take out the Spurs was the best story of the first round, and on a personal level, having watched Z-Bo in Portland and in New York, I’m happy to see him playing so well. Anyway, I guess “out of nowhere” means “there aren’t a lot of photos of them on the internet” because I really can’t find great evidence or images of their tattoos. Sorry.
—
Players with tattoos:
Darrell Arthur
Arthur has tattoos on both shoulders and a “King Arthur” backpiece.
Mike Conley
Conley has a tattoo on his left shoulder.
Hamed Haddadi
On Haddadi’s left shoulder is a stylized dragon.
O.J. Mayo
“Juice Monster” is a crazy tattoo, even if it was Mayo’s childhood nickname. His “dedication” and “sacrifice” bicep tattoos are meaningful, but it’s his King Kong design that speaks the most: “I’d like that to be my motto; I’m King Kong of the court,” he said in a 2007 interview.
Zach Randolph
Randolph has tattoos on both arms. Nike had him pose with a sword once.
Players without tattoos:
Tony Allen
Shane Battier: Asked he ever wanted a tattoo, Battier confessed, “No. You know what, I’m not cool enough to pull it off. If I got one it’d be really dorky — it would look funny on me.”
Marc Gasol
Rudy Gay
Xavier Henry
Leon Powe
Ishmael Smith
Greivis Vasquez
Sam Young
