When Ja Morant’s Tattoo Took 10 Painful Hours to Make and Paid Tribute to Kobe Bryant

Kobe Bryant is undoubtedly one of the most influential NBA athletes, admired by several youngsters today. Memphis Grizzlies star Ja Morant is one of them, who paid his tributes to the Mamba by bearing pain on his body for double-digit hours. In the 2023 offseason, Morant endured multiple hours of suffering to get a massive tattoo of Kobe Bryant on his lower back. The tattoo consists of Kobe’s #24 with “Mentality” inscribed over it, indicating the famous mindset “Mamba Mentality”.

On the other side, there is the “sheath” logo associated with Kobe’s Nike collection. While he was serving a 25-game suspension during the time, he bore the needle of the tattoo machine on his back for more than 10 hours. These two lower back tattoos have incredible detail and are a terrific example of tattoo artistry. This photo shared by tattoo artist Andres Ortega on IG provides a glimpse at the tattoo designs.

 

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A post shared by Andres Ortega (@ortega_ink)

 On the top of his back, Ja had his #12, which he has worn throughout his hoops journey. On his lower back, he also had the logos of his high school Crestwood Knights, AAU squad South Carolina Hornets, alma-meter Murray State Racers, and his NBA team Memphis Grizzlies. Apart from that, 2x All-Star had a quote reading “Life’s a gamble” sandwiched between two roll dices with the six-count, and four Aces. 

Meanwhile, on his chest, he had his birthyear 1999, a dove with a red rose, and a basketball with a hand under it, among a couple of quotes that covered a big portion of the front upper body. There is also an image of an eye with detailed eyelashes and a highly defined pupil in the middle. These tattoo designs came during a difficult period for the high-flying athlete.

Ja Morant made a grand return during the 2023-24 season

Ja Morant had to pay a heavy penalty for what NBA commissioner Adam Silver termed as “wielding a firearm” in an Instagram story. For the second time in 2023, Morant was seen brandishing a gun on an IG story of his friend Davonte Pack. Due to the NBA’s official suspension, Ja Morant wasn’t eligible to play for the first 25 games of the season. He was disallowed from the one-third of the season and had to pay a fine of over $7.5 million. 

After being reinstated from suspension in the third week of December 2023, the Guard put on a show. In a heated game against the Pelicans, he sealed the deal with a hanging 360° layup after a lovely dribble move. This maneuver just after his return showcased his Memba Mentality, sending Grizzlies fans, especially his sister Teniya “Niya” Morant, into a frenzy. It marked the best stretch of the season for a struggling Grizzlies. For the only time in the season, the Grizzlies had won four in a row after a horrendous 6-19 start.

In 9 games before his right shoulder surgery in the second week of January, the top-notch athlete put up 25.1 points, 8.1 assists, and 5.6 rebounds while shooting 47.1% from the field. His team prevailed in 6 of the 9 games when he was active. Since he has been out because of his right shoulder surgery, the Grizzlies have only sunk further.