NBA star Ron Artest’s decision to change his name to “Metta World Peace” is the latest in a long line of professional US athletes who have done likewise – some for religious convictions, others for absurd reasons. Here are some of them:

Metta World Peace 5 Name Changes He Should Consider After James Harden Elbow Incident VIDEO
Metta World Peace reverted back to Ron Artest for a moment after he elbowed Oklahoma City Thunder guard James Harden in the face during Sunday night's Lakers-Thunder game. Reuters
Muhammad Ali
Muhammad Ali is fine, says the Rev. Al Sharpton, despite reports Friday that the boxing champion is seriously ill. However, Ali does suffer from Parkinson's. Creative Common
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
Born Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor, the basketball superstar changed his name to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar in 1971, to reflect his Islamic religion. (Because this occurred seven years after Muhammad Ali’s change, it wasn’t quite as big an event). Interestingly, Jabbar later sued a Miami Dolphins running back who had changed his name to Karim Abdul-Jabbar and even wore Kareem’s famous #33. That Jabbar later changed his name to Abdul-Karim al-Jabbar. Reuters
World B Free
In 1981, basketball player Lloyd B. Free had his name legally changed to “World B. Free.” Although it sounds like an ode to global peace (like Artest’s new moniker), it actually refers to Free’s ability to make 360-degree dunks. Creative Common
Chad Ochocinco
Chad Johnson, NFL wide receiver of the Cincinnati Bengals, legally changed his surname to Ochocinco in August 2008. The new name referred to his uniform number "eighty-five" in Spanish. (Although, technically it should’ve been “ocho y cinco.” Reuters
Hakeem Olajuwon
This wasn’t really a name change, per se, but rather a change in the phonetic English spelling of an African name. The Houston Rockets center changed the spelling of his first name in the early 1990s from “Akeem.” Reuters