Ron Artest: America's Idol Embarrassing Himself on 'Dancing with the Stars'

It turns out that not all athletes are great dancers. Ron Artest, or Metta World Peace as he is now known, failed to turn in a good performance on the season premiere of Dancing With The Stars on Monday night.

Artest and dance partner Peta Murgatroyd bumbled their way through the Cha Cha. When all was said and done, the judges gave him a score of 14 out of a possible 30.

The judges’ critiques of Artest were not too flattering, either, but at least they felt like he brought something to the dance floor, even if it was not all good.

Judges Bruno Tonioli and Carrie Ann Inaba both gave Artest a five, but were quick to point out that there is an energy surrounding him when he is on camera.

"You have power and you have performance value,” said Tonioli.

"Now we know who the wild one is going to be,” Inaba added. “The fun factor was high up there."

Given the way that Artest was able to win over the crowd with his charm and charisma, he should be able to overcome his mediocre dancing in order to make it through to the next round. I mean it’s not like it takes actual talent to advance on this show.

If Artest really has aspirations of winning the show, though, he has to get better in subsequent weeks. His footwork, in particular, was the source of problems for him last night and he needs to learn how to control his body when he is out there.

But even if Artest is not able to overcome his faults as a dancer, which is a distinct possibility because dancing is not something that you can just pick up with the snap of your fingers, he has made a lot of new fans.

Perhaps Artest’s newfound fame outside of the NBA will allow him to get his long-gestating rap career off the ground.