Michael Beasley is no stranger to controversy, and during a recent appearance on Adin Ross’ stream, the former NBA forward added fuel to an unlikely fire by offering a surprisingly blunt and hilarious take on tattoos and dark skin.
While joking with Lance Stephenson, Beasley questioned the logic behind dark-skinned players getting tatted up, claiming it was essentially a waste of money because no one can see the ink clearly.
“You know what I didn’t know until we was teammates?” Beasley said, pointing at Stephenson. “I didn’t know you had tattoos. Him, Kevin Garnett, Patrick Beverley... like, what are y’all doing wasting money on tattoos? Look, you can’t see them. You didn’t know he had tattoos. Yeah, he tatted up.”
Though the moment was delivered in classic Beasley style, half-serious, half-sarcastic, it reignited conversation around body art in the NBA and whether it truly adds value to player image, performance, or marketability.
Interestingly, Beasley’s comment coincides with a viral stat making rounds in basketball circles: the last nine NBA MVP winners have had no visible tattoos. That list includes Russell Westbrook (2017), James Harden (2018), Giannis Antetokounmpo (2019, 2020), Nikola Jokic (2021, 2022, 2024), Joel Embiid (2023), and most recently, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2025).
While clearly just a coincidence, it has added to a quiet but entertaining debate: is the “no tattoo” MVP streak a fluke or a low-key reflection of a mindset shift among the league’s elite?
Some fans and even former players have embraced the narrative as part of a broader commentary on focus and discipline. Whether it’s Jokic preferring horses over ink, Shai’s understated fashion, or Embiid’s already vibrant personality needing no added decoration, there’s a trend, intentional or not, of MVPs avoiding the tattoo chair.
At the same time, the culture around NBA tattoos has never been stronger. From Allen Iverson pioneering the “tattooed baller” look to LaMelo Ball facing recent criticism for his heavily inked torso, tattoos have remained central to NBA fashion, identity, and storytelling.
Ball even faced league scrutiny over his visible neck tattoo promoting his clothing brand “LaFrance,” with the NBA initially asking him to cover it up in games.
Beasley’s quip, though likely meant more as comedic roast than social commentary, still taps into a layered conversation: how visible are tattoos on darker skin tones, and does that affect why certain players choose or choose not to get them?
The debate brings up real questions about visibility, expression, and how appearance affects public perception in sports.
Ultimately, whether you’re clean-skinned like the recent MVPs or fully inked up like LaMelo or Stephenson, performance will always matter more than appearance.
But Beasley’s comment added a unique (and wildly specific) angle to the discourse and reminded everyone that sometimes, all it takes to spark a trend is a good joke with a hint of truth.
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