Bad Shaq Quote: "I'm a Connoisseur of Throwing Elbows"

This is a running feature where we keep track of Shaquille O'Neal's running mouth. When he gaffes on TNT's studio show, may the petty, monotone recriminations seep through the faulty, once-conventional wisdom. 

When assessing Metta World Peace's seven-game elbow suspension, Shaq harkened back to his playing days, flaunting his credentials as a "connoisseur of throwing elbows." This is factually correct—O'Neal wagged his jagged edges into the throats and temples of many post players.

So why highlight this true quote then? 

Because, Shaq was using his dirty play as a perch from which to sanctimoniously ridicule Metta World Peace. O'Neal insisted that El Conocedor would never throw an elbow like the one Harden caught, amusing those who remembered the anger punch hurled at Brad Miller. 

If Shaq feels that MWP deserved a larger suspension, that is a wholly defensible opinion. What doesn't make sense is to declare Peace's intent to harm as different in kind from the Great Shaq's antics.

O'Neal doesn't even cop to having been wrong in the past, or having overreacted on the court. No, he was totally in control of his violence, and Metta wasn't. Therefore, Ron should be punished to the max for not hurting others within the magic Shaq parameters. It's self-serving, even for a guy who treats life as his personal morality buffet. 

Sadly, O'Neal's mini rant distracted from an honorable bad-quote mention, uttered in assessment of the 2012 Phoenix Suns: 

"When you look up pride in the Webster's dictionary, talks about self respect, and something to be proud of."