Kevin Durant embraces a giant new tattoo, and healthier dinner options

Posted on | Wednesday, September 14, 2011 | No Comments

You wouldn't know it by looking at him in a basketball uniform, but Kevin Durant remains one of the more impressively tattooed men in the NBA right now. And his latest creation pays tribute to both the state he grew up in, his uniform number of choice, and his love of sweet, sweet body ink.

Dig:

Wow. As you can see, the hands in the tat are acting as an on-skin version of his number 35. Durant chose the number because, according to CBSSports.com' Ben Golliver, his childhood Amateur Athletic Union coach passed away at age 35. And, as the joke goes, he better not ever be traded to or sign with the Boston Celtics (Reggie Lewis), Utah Jazz (Darrell Griffith), or the Indiana Pacers (Roger Brown); the three NBA teams that have retired the number 35.

It's a pretty crazy looking tat, in a good way, courtesy of Tattoos by Randy, and Durant was kind enough to tweet about it over the weekend.

In other Durant news, The Oklahoman has a nice piece on Durant's acceptance of a healthier lifestyle, a piece that will probably make most of us squeamish as we recover from Labor Day's grilled meat-fest.

Here's Durant on his green switcheroo:

The two-time scoring champ can cram wings with the best of them. Durant loves them so much that Wingstop this year was a sponsor at his annual basketball camp in Oklahoma City, and there's been talk of Durant possibly signing on as a spokesman for the Texas-based chain. It's just one of his many food fetishes.

But after four seasons, Durant is finally figuring out the importance of healthier choices. As a naturally skinny person, Durant isn't likely to ever undergo the transformation most would prefer. Eating better, however, could help offset his inability to bulk up. It could improve Durant's conditioning and help protect that frail but growing frame.

"This past year, I was really big on eating a lot of foods with vegetables. That's all I really ate this past year was foods with vegetables," Durant said. "I'm trying to stay away from the red meats and the fast food as much as I can, even though it's tempting."

Durant, who has employed a chef during the season the past three years, recently hired a new cook to cater meals and ensure he's staying away from fatty foods.

Wait, Wingstop? There's one of those in every suburban stripmall, but that place looks really skeevy. Wings are wings and they are always delicious, there is no doubt, but someone has to take our man to a wing join that's a little less chain-y. And a little less "located right next to a Discount Tire store."

Still, cool tat, cool new dinner choices, Kevin.

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