Matt Barnes Gets Kobe Bryant and Gianna Tattoo Tribute from Famous Artist

Matt Barnes is paying tribute to his friend and teammate Kobe Bryant with a brand new tattoo ... and it's incredible.

The ex-NBA star hit up legendary ink artist Steve Butcher -- who did the amazing Tupac work on Matt's hand -- in order to add a new image of Kobe and Gianna to his arm.

The image Matt's new tattoo is based from was a moment between Kobe and Gigi at the 2016 NBA All-Star Game in Orlando ... a moment captured on Valentine's Day.

Matt only played 2 seasons on the Lakers with Kobe (from 2010 to 2012) -- but they were friends and Barnes has talked openly about how much respect he had for Kobe on and off the court.

Barnes prepped for the tat sesh with a variety of goodies -- from joints to candy ... the works!

We're still waiting for the final reveal -- but it's already looking incredibly detailed.

Of course, Kobe had such an impact on generations of NBA players -- stars from LeBron James to Anthony Davis and Devin Booker have all had Kobe ink tatted on their bodies.

Kobe and Gianna passed away on January 26th in a helicopter crash in Calabasas.