Basketball

Sacramento Kings rookie Kyle Guy displays his faith with tattoos

By Kevin Mercer Dec 2, 2019
Sacramento Kings guard Kyle Guy (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

Sacramento Kings guard Kyle Guy is new to the NBA this season, and the rookie has found a way to help tell his story: tattoos. Guy revealed the meanings behind his tattoos in a recent feature with NBC Sports. Many of them relate to his Christian faith.

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He explained that his first tattoos say “In such a way” on each of his shoulders, which references Scripture and its instruction to run the race of faith in such a way as to obtain the prize.

The right side of his torso depicts three crosses and his left side says, “I am third.” “God, family, then me,” Guy clarified in the video.

Another tattoo on his right leg is a roaring lion with an open mouth. Inside the lion’s mouth, David stands over the defeated Goliath. Guy said this tattoo is particularly relatable.

“I’ve always felt like David in my basketball career,” he said.

Guy has a few more tattoos that also have special significance. He has a Swahili phrase that means “we’re all the same” and the Hawaiian islands, the place of his wedding to his childhood sweetheart. Still, Guy’s tattoos mostly tell the story of his commitment to Christ.

And tattoos aren’t the only way Guy has displayed his faith in Christ. In a tweet announcing that he was declaring for the draft, he wrote that “every last praise and all glory goes to God.” And like his shoulder tattoos, his Instagram and Twitter bios both say “I am third.”

Guy played three years in college with the Virginia Cavaliers and was a two-time First-Team All-ACC performer in 2018 and 2019.

This past April, in his last collegiate game, Guy scored 24 points to help the Cavaliers win the school’s first ever national championship in dramatic fashion with an 85-77 overtime win against Texas Tech. Guy was named the tournament’s Most Outstanding Player. He also drilled three clutch free throws with under a second remaining to give his team a one-point win over Auburn in the Final Four.

During a nationally televised postgame interview during the tournament, Guy also mentioned God. When asked how he was able to deal with the pressure, Guy said, “With my faith in the Lord, and my team.”

The championship run capped an unprecedented redemption story for Guy and for the whole Virginia program after being the first No. 1 seed ever to lose to a No. 16 seed the previous year.

The New York Knicks drafted Guy 55th overall in last June’s NBA Draft and traded him to the Kings, where he is currently on a two-way contract. He splits time between Sacramento and the franchise’s G League affiliate in Stockton, Calif., the Stockton Kings. Guy has yet to appear in a regular-season NBA game, although he’s been back with Sacramento for the team’s past five games.

On Saturday, Guy displayed his elite scoring potential with a career-high 42 points in a 113-109 Stockton win over the Iowa Wolves. Guy is averaging 26.6 points a game, third in the G League, and his 41 made 3-pointers rank second in the league.

Sacramento (8-10) next plays on Monday at home at 10 p.m. ET against the Chicago Bulls.

RELATED STORIES:
– Former Virginia star Kyle Guy giving glory to God as NBA journey begins
– Virginia coach Tony Bennett thanks ‘Lord and my Savior’ after school’s 1st national title
– NEW PODCAST: Tony Bennett, Virginia Men’s Basketball Coach
– Harrison Barnes leans on Scripture after learning of trade to Sacramento Kings

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