NBA star Markelle Fultz is taking Wakanda Forever literally ... he just got a foot-long image of the Black Panther tattooed on his thigh -- and it's AMAZING!!
TMZ Sports has learned back in the summer, Fultz hit up "Ink Master" star Roly T-Rex about getting some ink done.
And, with Chadwick Boseman's death and the Black Lives Matter movement at its peak ... the two got to thinking a "Black Panther" piece would be perfect.
According to Roly T-Rex, the artwork -- featuring a stern Black Panther surrounded by lightning -- embodied BLM's message and paid tribute to the late Boseman ... so Fultz was all about it.
The Orlando Magic star was able to sit for the needle sesh this week ... and Roly tells us everything went great.
The piece -- which is about 12-13 inches tall -- took roughly five hours to complete ... and Roly says Fultz was "ecstatic" at its finished result.
"He loved it, man," said Roly, who also does tattoo work for Fultz's Magic teammate, Aaron Gordon. "He loves the tat."
Roly says the plan is to add a little something more to the artwork later ... explaining Fultz wants a symbol to go along with it on his knee.