As the Denver Nuggets were working their way through the NBA Playoffs, long-time fan and tattoo artist Mike Davis knew he was in the midst of something special. Watching Nicola Jokić, Jamal Murray and the rest of the team obliterate all of their competition invigorated Davis and the rest of the long-suffering Nuggets fanbase, they knew this was a year they weren’t going to forget well before the Larry O’Brien trophy was in their grasp. So Davis did what he does best—tattoo. Davis started a deal where fans could come in and pick a piece of Nuggets themed flash for $52.80 during the NBA Finals.
The deal was a hit as many fans came in to have their fandom inked into their skin. Then, this week, somebody who was a little more than just a fan came—Nuggets coach Michael Malone.
Coach Michael Malone’s coolness levels: 📈
Eight days after winning the NBA Finals, coach celebrated with a permanent reminder of his team and their accomplishment. 🏆
📸: Mike Diaz with Triple W Tattoos LLC pic.twitter.com/hye2nRujv7
— Denver7 News (@DenverChannel) June 20, 2023
Malone was joined in getting tattooed by a couple of his assistant coaches. After being shown a couple of different designs by Diaz, Malone chose the image of Maxie (the Nuggets prospector logo) holding a basketball and the Larry O’Brien championship trophy in lieu of his trademark pitchfork.
Diaz’s original sale caught the attention of the local Denver news, which brought the tattoo artist onto the radar of Nuggets assistant Ryan Bowen, who got Diaz on the phone.
“Sweet! This is crazy,” Diaz told 9NEWS. “Today is my day off, so I told them ‘I have Tuesday open and I can get you guys in.’ So we chatted back and forth over the last couple of days to try and nail down the designs.”
Here at Inked, we take our sports tattoos very seriously. I don’t know how many times I’ve had to write an article about some idiotic fan trying to predict the future with a tattoo only to watch their team fall short. That’s a trend that needs to die. But this seemingly new trend of coaches going out and getting ink to celebrate their championships? We’re here for it. If this trend started just a little earlier, Bill Belichick would have a full sleeve by now.
We tip our hats to Coach Malone and his new tattoo, and we think it’ll be safe to say that both Malone and Diaz hope to be adding another tattoo this time next year.
