Ron Artest Pays Homage To Rodman, Forgets To Actually Play Like Rodman

Remember when Ron Artest wore number 91 for the Pacers? That was five years ago, in honor of Dennis Rodman, so yesterday's hair was nothing new. As pro, he's always fashioned himself as a disciple of Rodman. Infer from that what you will. Same for his hairstyle, actually:

For years now, he's tried to cultivate this image of the slightly unhinged superstar, relentless on defense, and religious about his dedication to defying our expectations. And it's working. He's looked upon as a troubled, defensive genius.

From the LA Times:

Ron Artest arrived on time, with a new blond dye job and several inscriptions in his hair.

He etched the word "defense" in three languages — Japanese, Hebrew and Hindi, he said.

Except that...

In plain English, however, his defense was poor Sunday against the Orlando Magic.

His assignment for most of the game, Vince Carter, had 25 points, including 10 points on free throws in the first quarter.

Uh... Oops? So much for tri-lingual defense.

The thing about Rodman is, at the end of the day, he was one of the two or three best rebounders in history. On both ends, he was unreal. His talent was as insane as he was, and that's what made him so fascinating. But Artest? At this point, his greatest asset is his reputation.

The idea of "Ron Artest, crazy genius" has become more compelling than anything he actually does on the court. He's ordinary. And that's why it makes sense for Ron Artest to dye his hair like that. As long as he keeps distracting people, they may not notice that Ron Artest is averaging just 11 ppg on 41% shooting this year.

Crazy, maybe. Genius? Not so much.