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Ron Artest’s Name Change Was Worth It For This Call Alone

We can’t bring ourselves to casually refer to him by this name yet, but legally, Ron Artest is now Metta World Peace. That’s what it says on the back of his jersey, and that’s how announcers calling Lakers games now refer to him. Some might be like us, and have trouble coming to grips with someone’s name actually being “Metta World Peace” (even when done with the best of intentions). And others might be like Kevin Harlan.

Harlan was on play-by-play duty for the Lakers’ 96-71 bounce-back win over the Jazz last night, and the delight he took in saying “Metta World Peace” proved to be one of the highlights for viewers. Harlan is no stranger to passionate calls, and when Artest World Peace threw down a vicious slam during the second quarter, Harlan let it fly:

Well, we doubt “fun for announcers” was high on Artest’s list of priorities as he considered the name change, but after hearing that, we’re definitely sold.

[Reddit]