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Metta World Peace | NBA Champion and All-Star, Coach, Mental Health Advocate and Entrepreneur

Metta World Peace

NBA Champion and All-Star, Coach, Mental Health Advocate and Entrepreneur

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Metta World Peace
Biography

We have long admired athletes for coming back from injuries, addiction or other hardships, but until NBA champion Ron Artest (nka Metta World Peace), none had so publicly triumphed over mental illness to reach the highpoint of their career. Metta World Peace’s inspirational story, told in the multi-award-winning and Emmy-nominated Showtime Sports documentary, Quiet Storm: The Ron Artest Story, is a moving example of the importance of mental health treatment and its impact on our personal and professional lives.

Metta World Peace (Ron Artest) played professional basketball for 18 years, becoming an NBA All-Star and earning a world champion ring as a member of the Los Angeles Lakers. He also played for the New York Knicks, Houston Rockets, Sacramento Kings, Indiana Pacers and Chicago Bulls, and internationally with the Chinese Basketball Association’s Sichuan Blue Whales and Italy’s Pallacanestro Cantù. Known for publicly sharing his battles with anxiety and depression, World Peace became a respected advocate for mental health and was honored as a “Mental Health Hero.” At a time when the mental health struggles of professional athletes were rarely acknowledged, he gained acclaim for publicly thanking his therapist after making the championship-winning shot for the Lakers in 2010. He then raffled his championship ring to benefit organizations that provide mental health services to underserved communities and appeared before Congress as a champion of the Mental Health in Schools Act. In 2011, World Peace received the NBA’s citizenship award for confronting his mental health challenges and turning around a career that had previously been known for violence and volatility.

Today, World Peace continues his mission to build awareness for the importance of mental health, particularly in underserved communities like the one that he grew up in in Queensbridge, NY. He is the Chief Impact Director of OOTify, a social impact technology platform that provides mental health infrastructure such as therapy, coaching, education and other innovative mental health solutions to enterprises such as hospitals, corporations, universities and nonprofits. He is the founder and chairman of Artest Management Group, currently raising a $1 billion venture fund to support his portfolio companies with marketing, strategy and other support.

Metta World Peace appears frequently in the media. He is the author of the 2018 autobiography, No Malice; My Life I Basketball or: How a Kid from Queensbridge Survived the Streets, the Brawls an Himself to Become an NBA Champion, an unvarnished account of his difficult upbringing in a family with mental health issues and a neighborhood immersed in drugs and violence. He also speaks honestly about his volatile life on the court and the “Malice in the Palace” brawl which earned him the longest suspensions in NBA history. World Peace is also the subject of the multi-award-winning and Emmy-nominated Showtime Sports documentary, Quiet Storm: The Ron Artest Story, featuring teammates Kobe Bryant, Lamar Odom and other NBA legends.

An inspirational speaker, Metta World Peace has appeared before a variety of audiences, including FII in Riyadh, the Milken Institute, SALT, UCLA Health Systems, USC School of Social Work, Claremont Graduate University, and the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference.

Metta World Peace
Featured Keynote Programs

BE ON TOP OF YOUR GAME BY TAKING CARE OF YOURSELF

Knowing you need to take care of your mental health is a sign of strength these days, however, this was not always the case. Especially in sports, athletes were often afraid to seek help to deal with the pressures of the game and life in general. Perhaps, fearing it would make them look weak, athletes often suffer in silence or if pressures become too much to bear, act out. Metta is one of the first professional athletes to publicly speak out on the topic of mental health and has helped raise awareness and remove the stigmas often associated with mental health issues. Through his persistent advocacy, Metta has been a key player in destigmatizing mental health issues, He speaks from experience and is a living example of how getting support has helped improve his life and game. In this riveting talk by the former NBA champion, you will learn that to be on top of your own game, mental health and wellness must be prioritized. Audiences will walk away recognizing the importance of seeking help, learning how to find support when they are in need and how to support others that may be struggling.

TO BE A CHAMPION YOU NEED HUSTLE, REINVENTION, AND TENACITY

It takes more than just desire to become a champion. You need hustle, tenacity, and reinvention to achieve big goals. When Metta Sandiford-Artest was growing up in Queensbridge, he had to overcome many obstacles to reach his goals—from surviving the streets of queens bridge New York in poverty, becoming a parent at 16 years old, to handling his own mental health issues, all odds were stacked against him.Over the course of his career he went from league-wide disgrace to fan favorite. In this exciting talk by the former NBA champion, Metta will take you from the streets of Queens to his NBA championship with the L.A. Lakers. Audiences will learn that regardless of the circumstances you come from, with hardwork and perseverance, anything can be possible. You need to find your desire, seek good mentors, work harder than everyone else, learn from your mistakes, and never give up.

FIRESIDE CHAT WITH METTA WORLD PEACE

Over his career, Metta Sandiford-Artest has been an NBA champion, actor, entrepreneur, philanthropist, and a spokesperson for mental health issues. In this fireside chat, you can enjoy the authentic experience of hearing behind-the-scenes’s stories of Metta’s career from NBA bad boy to being honored with the J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award. Audiences will come away with a deeper understanding of what it takes to be a champion, how to take care of their own mental health, and get business tips from Metta’s life as a venture capitalist.

Metta World Peace
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Frequently Asked Questions

Quick answers to some of the most common questions about booking Metta World Peace for your event.
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How do I book Metta World Peace for my event?

Booking Metta World Peace with Premiere Speakers Bureau is a streamlined 4-step process:
  • Availability Check: Contact us with your event date and budget to verify if your desired speaker is available.
  • Hold Date: We place a temporary "hold" on the speaker's calendar while you finalize internal approval.
  • Contracting: We issue a contract outlining the fee, cancellation policy, and event expectations.
  • Logistics: Once signed, our event management team handles all travel booking, itinerary, and AV requirements.

Why should I partner with Premiere Speakers Bureau rather than contacting speakers directly?

Partnering with Premiere Speakers Bureau provides a comprehensive safety net for your event that direct booking cannot match. You get the same speaker for the same price, but with a dedicated team with over 30 years of event experience handling contracts, logistics, and are prepared for any emergency. We know what it takes to run an excellent event.

What makes Premiere Speakers Bureau unique compared to other agencies?

Premiere Speakers Bureau distinguishes itself by having over 30 years of experience while partnering with more than 35,000 events. PSB has also built a streamlined, fully online process that makes booking a speaker, handling travel and payments extremely easy for anyone looking to plan a speaker led event.

How does Premiere Speakers Bureau's 'Zero Cost Service' model work?

Premiere Speakers Bureau operates on a 'Zero Cost Service' model for event planners. Our services—including research, booking, and logistics—are always free to the client. The speaker covers our commission from their standard honorarium as payment for our role in marketing and managing their engagements.

How are speaker fees structured, and what is typically included?

A speaker's fee typically covers the keynote presentation, a pre-event planning call, and standard customization. Travel expenses are usually billed separately.

What are the standard policies for speaker travel and expenses?

Travel expenses are negotiated during contracting. We generally recommend a flat travel fee for simplicity, though we also offer line-by-line invoicing when preferred. PSB ensures these expenses adhere to professional standards, and our Event Portal allows for easy tracking and invoicing.
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Metta World Peace

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