The Boston Celtics aren’t NBA Champions, but Jack Bienvenue has no regrets.
Bienvenue — now infamous for the “Boston Celtics 2022 World Champions” tattoo branded on his left shoulder — intends to keep the ink, even in the aftermath of the Warriors edging the Celtics for the Larry O’Brien trophy Thursday night.
“I don’t think I’d get it lasered off because it’s part of me,” Bienvenue told The Athletic before Game 3. “If they end up losing and then they win like next year, after they win I could get it corrected. Get the two lasered off and get a three.”
Bienvenue, an 18-year-old graduate of Cape Cod Technical High School, first got the tattoo back on March 21. At the time, the Celtics had ascended from the depths of the Eastern Conference to take control of the fourth seed, positioning themselves for a potential playoff run.
Jayson Tatum walks off the floor after the Celtics lost to the Warriors in Game 6Getty Images“I said, ‘I’m so confident the Celtics will win it, I’ll get a tattoo of the (2022 banner),” Bienvenue said. “My friend said, ‘No you wouldn’t.’ So I was like, ‘Screw you guys, I’m getting it done.’”
That day after school, Bienvenue made a beeline for the local tattoo parlor, Hotline Tattoo.
“I’ve been tattooing almost 20 years, so I’ve seen a lot of weird stuff come through, but this one really stood out,” Taylor Lindley, the tattoo artist who gave Bienvenue the tattoo, said.
Bienvenue’s gamble nearly paid off: Boston fell just two wins shy of capturing the franchise’s 18th NBA title, and its first since 2008.
But now, he’ll be left with a tattoo commemorating a championship that never came to fruition.
