#1
Kobe Bryant -Wifey
With a reputation like he has and a nickname like "Black Mamba," it can
be easy to forget that Kobe's signature tattoo is highly sentimental; an
homage to his wife Vanessa, letting us all know that the king of Los
Angeles has a queen.
#2
Chris Andersen- Birdman
Andersen has long been called "Birdman" because of his insane hops, so
he decided to get tattoos of wings on the undersides of his arms. Rad!
#3
Carlos Boozer-Grrrr
He might be second fiddle to Derrick Rose on the Bulls, but Boozer is
absolutely the team's top dog when it comes to tats. The grizzly bear
emblazoned on his left arm, our personal favorite, pays tribute to his
hometown of Juneau, Alaska.
#4
Chauncey Billups- The Boss
Everywhere he's gone, Chauncey has assumed the role of a beloved
teammate and natural leader, so it's cool that his arm tattoos show just
that.
#5
Marquis Daniels-Sunshine state
This Bucks guard has moved a lot during his career- Alabama, Dallas,
Indiana, Boston, and Milwaukee. However, this awesome back tat of his
home state of Florida shows that Daniels hasn't forgotten his roots.
#6
DeShawn Stevenson-Cool?
Definitely a candidate for the oddest entry on this list, the Atlanta
Hawks guard got a tattoo of Abraham Lincoln on his neck. His reasoning?
Apparently Stevenson was going to get ink of Martin Luther King Jr, but
was reprimanded by former teammate Gilbert Arenas for telling too many
people about his plan. So, he settled for mister Emancipation
Proclamation.
#7
Marcin Gortat-Homage
Nice to see that sometimes principals can win out over money. Gortat,
when asked to cover his ink of Michael Jordan by Reebok, responded, "It
helped me get to the NBA, it's not going anywhere." That statement
turned the image of His Airness from generic to something special in our
eyes.
#8
Tim Duncan-D&D
Yes, even nice guy Timmy D. has a tattoo! This ink is of a demon clown,
and it's located on his right shoulder blade. It gets better: The tat is
of a Dungeons and Dragons character. Yep, the San Antonio Spurs star is
a bonafide nerd!
#9
Tyson Chandler-The Lil Man
Chandler has recently removed the flaming basketball with his name on it
and replaced it with a more mature tattoo- a very detailed and cool
portrait of his son by Chuey Quintanar.
#10
LeBron James-Roots
The King has a lot of well-known tattoos, but we're personal fans of the
ones on his right arm- his shooting arm. The forearm has his home
city's area code, "330", while the upper arm has "Gloria," his mother's
name; as well as a really cool image of a lion wearing a crown,
referencing the fact that "LeBron," according to its African origins,
means "The King.:
#11
Shawn Marion-Oops!
This Mavericks player got his tattoo in part as a tribute to his
nickname, "The Matrix." However, the actual meaning of these characters
comes out as "Demon Bird Moth Balls." We hope Marion knew that when he
got the tattoo, because that's a pretty ridiculous phrase.
#12
Paul Pierce-Survivor
LeBron may go by "The Chosen One," but we think Paul Pierce has an even
more legit reason to have that tattooed on his back. In 2000, Pierce was
stabbed several times outside of a Boston nightclub. He not only
survived, but played every game of that season.
