As William Shakespeare once wrote, a rose by any other name would smell as sweet. Or, to put it another way, Derrick Rose would still be MVP even if his name was Steve Stinkbloom. Then there’s Ronald William Artest Jr., whose only hurdle in legally changing his name to Metta World Peace was paying off an old traffic ticket. He’s hardly the only athlete to compete under a different name than the one on his birth certificate. This week, The List looks at the sports stars with all kinds of name in their game.

BY IAN HARRISON

The inspiration for Artest’s switch to World Peace came from Chad Javon Johnson, better known to football fans as Ochocinco. The flamboyant former Bengals star first came up with the idea for his numeric name during Hispanic Heritage Month in 2006, taking the field in his 85 jersey with Ocho Cinco on the back and getting QB Carson Palmer to rip the fake name off. After legally changing his name, Ochocinco briefly flirted with another switch to Hachi Go, the Japanese translation of 8-5, and even considered returning to plain-old Johnson, but has apparently decided to stick it out with this surname.

The mild-mannered message of Metta World Peace might remind basketball fans of former NBAer World B. Free. But the man born Lloyd Bernard Free didn’t choose his new name because he wanted to spread good tidings. Back in his Brooklyn high school days, the high-flying Free was said to be ‘All-World’ thanks to his dynamic dunks and eye-popping 44-inch vertical leap. Sometimes known as ‘The Prince of Midair,’ but better known as World, he said so long to Lloyd while starring for Golden State in 1981.

Named after his father, Cassius Marcellus Clay was a sharp-tongued, boastful sort who was seldom far from controversy. The most famous boxer of all time found himself at the centre of a big debate when he joined the Nation of Islam in 1964, a time when racial tensions still simmered across America. Originally expected to be called Cassius X, like his activist friend Malcolm, Clay was instead given the more regal name Muhammad Ali by Nation of Islam Leader Elijah Muhammad.

Brian Carson Williams was a first-round draft pick of the Orlando Magic in 1991, but his NBA career didn’t take off until he helped MJ’s Bulls win their fifth title in 1997. After signing a lucrative deal with Detroit, Williams changed his name to Bison Dele to honour his Native and African ancestry. He retired at age 30, walking away from the final five seasons of a 30-million dollar contract, only to disappear in mysterious circumstances two years later, apparently murdered by his brother while sailing his yacht through the South Pacific.

Back when he played on a national championship team at the University of Miami and suited up (very briefly) for the Calgary Stampeders, he was just Dwayne Douglas Johnson. But after stepping into the ring and finding wrestling fame, he became known to one and all as The Rock. Johnson is now an actor who returned to his football roots in movies like Gridiron Gang and The Game Plan.

Walker Smith Jr. was only 14 when he tried to sign up for his first official bout. Too young to register for Amateur Athletic Union membership, he borrowed the card of 16-year-old friend Ray Robinson, and one of the greatest careers in boxing history was born under a false identity. Nicknamed Sugar for his sweet, fluid style of fighting, the flamboyant Robinson is considered the first athlete to travel with an entourage.

Like his father before him, his given name was Ferdinand Lewis Alcindor. At his Manhattan high school and through his college career at UCLA, everyone called him Lew. But this NBA giant, the league’s all-time leading scorer, also changed his name after converting to Islam. In 1971, fresh off a Finals MVP performance in Milwaukee’s sweep of the Baltimore Bullets, the King of the sky-hook adopted the Muslim moniker Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

Kareem is not to be confused with another UCLA athlete who converted to Islam and given a similar name. That would be football player Sharmon Shah, dubbed Karim Abdul-Jabbar during his days as a Bruins running back. A two-time team MVP in college, Karim later set several Miami Dolphins rookie rushing records. Because of the near-identical name, and the fact that both wore jersey number 33, Kareem the hoopster sued Karim the footballer. They settled out of court and the younger Karim eventually changed his name again, to Abdul-Karim al-Jabbar, putting Abdul on the back of his jersey.

The controversy between Kareem and Karim apparently served as a cautionary tale for the Angels pitcher who was born Johan Santana. Seeking to avoid confusion between himself and the ace left-hander of the same name, the Domincan righty changed his name to Ervin in 2003. Why Ervin? He just liked the way it sounded.

Sorry brother, nobody is getting excited about Bolleamania. But Hulkamania? That’s a concept anyone would rip their shirt apart for. Whether he was Hollywood Hogan or just The Hulk, no wrestler was ever as big a sensation as the man born Terrence Gene Bollea.