Did you know that tattoos were in existence as early as 5000 BCE? Of course, looking at history will show us that there was a particular reason why men and women in those eras tattooed themselves. They included anything from cultural to religious reasons. As the years passed, so have the reasons. According to experts, those who get inked now do so as part of self-expression, to symbolize identity, or for quite a lot—to commemorate, honor, or grieve. And we are going to be focusing on the latter section.

First off is Kevin Durant. Now, we know that NBA players and tats go a long way. It would be easier to get the record of players without body ink than the ones who do sport them! And those who believed that KD belonged in the former list, were in for a rude awakening sometime in 2011. Of course, since then, we have seen him flaunting his ink on many occasions.

But right now, we are interested in just one category—the tattoo of his mom and grandma. As opposed to portraits, the ‘Slim Reaper’ had opted for inking their names below specific elements. The tattoo on his left peck is that of a dove, with the name ‘Barbara’ underneath. Barbara A. Davis, KD’s grandmother passed away in 2022.

Mama Barbara stepped in to help raise a young Durant when his father deserted the family. Needless to say, her guidance and support during his early childhood proved to be the foundation for his life. As such, Kevin Durant missed the NBA’s 75th anniversary team ceremony at the 2022 All-Star Game scheduled for the evening as Barbara passed away that morning. Wanda, his mom, shared the sad news via her IG.

As for a blooming rose and the name ‘Wanda’ in his right peck, that’s a tribute to his mother. The “real MVP” as he described her, Mama Durant is the most important person in his life. And continues to be. From raising him to ensuring every dream of an aspiring hooper with exceptional talent was realized, his mom continues to be KD’s pillar of strength to this day.

Now, the next one on the list is someone tattoo fans are going to love!

Kevin Durant might not be covered in tats, but Jordan Clarkson certainly is!

The 32-year-old Filipion-American guard for the Utah Jazz is popular in the league for his swag, style, and of course, his tattoos. So much so that, certified tattoo-vet, JR Smith, who played with Clarkson in his Cleveland stint, was in awe of him. In a 2018 article from The Athletic, the 2x champion said, “He’s at the top. He’s swaggy all day.” So how did a then-25-year-old Jordan go from a blank canvas to nearly completely covered in ink in one year?

The answer lies in both his childhood and adulthood. Since Clarkson was a boy, he loved to draw. And he often spent his time sketching. Given his refined creative taste and eye for detail, Jordan knew he wouldn’t be able to get quality ink without finding the right person for the job.

And of course, finding the right person naturally means it costs a pretty penny. That’s where his NBA career came in handy. He had the means to afford skilled tattoo artists and since then, Jordan Clarkson has been adding more art to his body. Drawings that each tell a story of their own. And more to our point, the portraits of his grandmother and great-grandmother.

His mother, Annette Tullao Davis is Filipina-American, but his grandmother, Marcelina Tullao Kingsolver, was from Pampanga, Philippines. And it was in November 2018 that he had started work on the spectacular piece. The portraits start from his neck as a bunch of roses with roots which then spill onto his chest, at the end of which the images sit. A Filipino flag also flies over it.

In an interview with GQ Sports about 10 months ago, the 2021 Sixth Man of the Year said, “That’s a big thing I carry with me. Always my Filipino culture and my love for the country.” If we were to go digging deeper, there’s no doubt that we would find a special story behind each tattoo as unique as the artist who wears it with complete pride. But that’s a story for another time.

For Joe Harris, tattoos were a reminder of perseverance

Former NBA sharpshooter, Harris, joined the tattoo community in 2021. Unlike a lot of his colleagues, the Nets star didn’t go all out with the ink. Rather, he felt it was only right that he kept two of the most important and influential people of his life as close to him as possible. Alice Harris and Elaine Phelps, his mother and grandmother, respectively, have taken permanent place on his left forearm.

“Two of the most influential people in my life,” he said during a Nets photoshoot in 2021. “People that I try to emulate. [It’s] a good reminder for me every day.”

Harris’ mother was diagnosed with  Stage 3 colorectal cancer in November 2019. Treatments soon followed and it comprised of two surgeries. The first was in July 2020 to remove the tumor and the follow-up was in October. Of course, radiation and chemotherapy happened in the midst of this. However, things took a turn for the worse when the Harris family suffered another loss.

In June 2020, Phelps, Alice’s mother, also passed away. She was 88 at the time. With the pandemic and all the stressful situations at home, suffice it to say that Joe Harris had a lot on his plate. In the end, he opted to leave the bubble after Game 2 of the 2020 playoffs, choosing to stay by his family’s side and attend his grandmother’s funeral service. Around this time, Mama Harris herself had a little “hiccup” as she describes it, after the first surgery.

But somehow the family managed to survive it all. And soon after the season was over, Harris got the tattoo. And finally, someone who takes after Harris is our last tattoo aficionado.

Chris Chiozza, the “teeny tiny kid” from Tennessee, carries a little bit of his grandmother everywhere

Yes, the ‘little bit’ is a full-color tattoo of his maternal grandmother, Pearlie Crenshaw, on his left shoulder. “She meant so much to me, so I was always trying to figure out a way I could commemorate her and always have her with me forever,” the then-point guard for Florida Gator had said. The bond that Christopher Xavier Chiozza had with his grandmother was special. In fact, the late Mrs. Crenshaw retired early from her job so her grandson wouldn’t have to go to daycare.

The Crenshaws owned a farm in Mason, Tennessee, and that’s where the grandparents and little Chiozza created unforgettable memories. And although he was undersized for a kid dreaming of one day playing in the professional league, the one thing Chris didn’t lack was energy. “That boy has more energy than anybody in the world,” Grandma Crenshaw used to say affectionately, as his mom, Curtistine Crenshaq-Chiozza recounted in a 2018 ESPN article.

The news of Pearline’s death couldn’t have come at a worse time. She passed away the summer before his junior year of high school at a time when tensions were high. For one, the Thad AAU team had a big tournament in Pittsburgh the same weekend as his grandmother’s funeral. Chris was still a far cry from being noticed by the big-league schools. Not because of his performance, but rather due to his tiny size.

Needless to say, the youngster was like a lone leaf caught in a harsh storm. An emotional one. But his mother, amidst the arrangements for her mother’s funeral, saw her son’s dilemma. “We told him to go play basketball, that his grandmother would want that for him. That was the best way he could honor her,” Curtistine advised Chiozza. And play he did!

Posting an average of  27 points, seven assists, and seven steals, he led Team Thad to the championship game, despite being down two players. It immediately put him on the recruiting radar of basketball blue bloods, receiving offers from the likes of Florida, Ohio State, UConn, etc. His notable accomplishments include winning a championship with the 2022 Warriors team. The 28-year-old last played for Saski Baskonia of the Liga ABC and Euro League.

Well, do you know of any such heartwarming stories behind tattoos? Or do you have any stories of yourselves? Share them in the comments below.