We usually try to do two main things in this space you're reading now: 1) Explain why you should be reading this and 2) Answer what the subject in question does and why is he important. The second part is hard in this case because, you see, Metta World Peace is a man of many trades. He's an alien who likes winning NBA championships. He's a meteorologist who gives vocabulary lessons on occasion. He's a rapper who might fuck around and bring Queensbridge back on the map.
But he's mainly a professional basketball player. He isn't playing in the NBA right now, but his on and off-court greatness as a premier defender and a culture provocateur ensures he won't be forgotten. The eccentricities and surrounding stories almost make him a myth. But he's not. These are facts. Here are 35 Things You Didn't Know About Metta World Peace.
1. He earned nicknames like Tru Warier and The New World Order while playing summer ball in Orchard Beach and Washington Heights.
2. He played on the same AAU team as Elton Brand and Lamar Odom.
3. He wore three numbers with the Indiana Pacers (15, 23, 91).
4. He was New York City’s co-player of the year after leading La Salle Academy to a 27-0 record.
5. On September 6, 2010, World Peace was cited for driving a race car with an expired registration down the street.
6. He has a workout music video.
7. He sold his NBA championship ring and donated the proceeds to New York charities.
8. He was the first contestant eliminated from season 13 of Dancing With the Stars.
9. He applied for a job at Circuit City while with the Chicago Bulls during his rookie season to take advantage of the employee discount.
10. He once drank Hennessy at halftime while with the Bulls
11. He pantsed Paul Pierce in a game and then released a video of him singing Pierce an apology
12. He asked for a few months off during the 04-05 season because he was tired from promoting an R&B album.
13. He wore No. 37 with the Lakers to honor Michael Jackson, who's hit “Thriller” was no. 1 on the Billboard charts for 37 straight weeks.
14. On Dec. 18, 2010, an art show honoring Artest was held in Toronto, Canada entitled "Lovable Badass."
15. In October 2012, he guest starred as a special panelist on Nickelodeon's game show Figure It Out.
16. He released a rap album entitled “My World” featuring P. Diddy, Juvenile, Mike Jones, Big Kap, Nature and Capone.
17. In February 2004, he wore a bathrobe to a Pacers practice as a “symbolic reminder to take it easy.”
18. He was suspended for three games in 2003 for destroying a television camera at MSG.
19. He planned to shoot a TV show titled They Call Me Crazy but scrapped it fearing it would distract him from helping the Lakers’ repeat.
20. He played monopoly and ate a Filipino dessert called halo-halo with random fans at the beach after signing with the Lakers.
21. His name change to Metta World Peace was originally delayed because he had unpaid speeding tickets.
22. He claims to be a checkers expert and that he has never lost a game in his life.
23. Ron Artest Sr., World Peace’s dad, was a former Golden Gloves boxer and a Navy veteran.
24. He once got into a fight with AAU teammate Elton Brand.
25. He once cracked two of Michael Jordan's ribs during a game of one-on-one.
26. He once told a group of kids “Stay focused, and stay away from unknown females.”
27. He approached Kobe Bryant about helping him win a title in the Lakers' shower...when he wasn't on the Lakers.
28. He didn't know Mike Woodson was the coach when he agreed to join the Knicks.
29. He's the only person who thinks Knicks owner James Dolan would make a great coach.
30. Sadly, he's a Jets fan.
31. World Peace switched to number 93 with the Kings because it looked like QB for Queensbridge.
32. He was 15 when his sister Quanisha died of SIDS. She's buried with one of his basketball trophies.
33. He was a math major at St. John's.
34. He's not a great sexter.
35. He was in the “Nas Is Like” video.
Because Queensbridge, obviously.
