Jayson Tatum reveals meaning of his tattoos to Jimmy Kimmel
Some of Jayson Tatum’s tattoos are pretty self-explanatory. There’s the tattoo of his mom and his younger self on his left calf, the tattoo of his son Deuce’s name on his left arm, and a tattoo of himself winning an NBA championship on his back.
Some of Tatum’s other ink requires explaining, however, which the Celtics star was happy to do during an appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” Tuesday.
The most complex of Tatum’s tattoos in terms of cultural references might be the “LIFE” tattoo on his left leg.
“Tattoos, for me, are like storytelling,” Tatum told Kimmel. “‘Life’ is my favorite movie of all time, with Martin Lawrence and Eddie Murphy. So I put the word Life, and then inside of it are my favorite characters from other movies.”
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Inside each letter of “LIFE” are, in order, Denzel Washington in “John Q.,” Will Smith in “Hitch,” Wesley Snipes in “White Men Can’t Jump,” and Dashiell “Dash” Parr from “The Incredibles.”
Kimmel got a kick out of the image of a puffy-faced Smith in particular, which comes from a scene in which Smith’s professional matchmaker Alex “Hitch” Hitchens suffers an allergic reaction while on a date.
“I think it’s just organic,” Tatum said. “Everybody’s that has seen that movie remembers that scene.”
Tatum and Kimmel also discussed the forward’s serpentine “24” tattoo, which Tatum got in honor of “Black Mamba” Kobe Bryant.
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Tatum idolized Bryant growing up, and after meeting Bryant as a child, he reconnected with him once he began playing in the NBA.
“I remember the first time we worked out, he asked me a question,” Tatum said. “He was like, ‘How much does it mean to you?’. That was such a powerful thing, because you think about all the things that you sacrifice, and how hard he worked to perfect his craft. How much does it mean to be one of the greatest?”
