Ron Artest: Metta World Peace Era Begins in Los Angeles

First there was Chad Johnson changing his name Chad Ochocincom and now there is Ron Artest changing his name to Metta World Peace.

The Metta World Peace era has officially begun—barring a lockout of the NBA season—and maybe this will be the change of direction needed for the artist formerly known as Artest.

Artest officially got his name changed this week. His daughter is also going to change her name as well.

It is a pleasant change for World Peace seeing how he was the main component at the “Malice at the Palace” in 2004. The brawl was one of the worst in sports history, as Artest ventured into the stands to beat the fan who threw a drink at him.

If I was going to condone anybody for changing their name, it would be Artest because of his history. He is a peaceful guy who made a horrible name for himself in his early days as an NBA player.

Maybe this change will change his production level. In 2010-11, Artest scored 8.5, 2.1 assists and 3.3 rebounds per contest. He shot 40 percent from the floor, including a dismal 36 percent from three-point range.

The 31-year-old is on the downside of his career. He can no longer be that lock-down defender that the Lakers need. He can no longer be counted on for production offensively.

This will be the year we will find out about his future with the Lakers. If he struggles to perform at a high level in 2011-12, the World Peace era in Los Angeles may be a shortened one.

It seems like Artest is more concerned with everything going on outside of the game of basketball. If he can focus on maintaining consistency on the floor, expect the Lakers to be right where they want to be come playoff time.

Hopefully we see the Metta World Peace era begin in 2011 instead of 2012. The NBA needs to get on this labor issue as soon as possible. Time is running out.