The Clippers are about to get a huge boost as their division rivals fall apart

Sometimes, you just have to be better than the teams around you. That might be the case for the Los Angeles Clippers, who beat Golden State last night to improve to 18-13 and take sole possession of fifth place in the Western Conference.

If you haven't been watching Clips basketball this year, you're not alone; a team losing Paul George in free agency and Kawhi Leonard to injury early in the season doesn't have much appeal on paper. But this team has grinded out win after win behind James Harden, Norman Powell and a top-tier defense, and now, according to The Athletic, Kawhi is about to make his timely debut for a team that keeps sneaking up the standings.

Every year, Leonard misses games and we collectively say, "Are we sure Kawhi can still play at an elite level?" and then he does. So I'm not even going to ask the question this year — I'm just going to assume he can play at an elite level.

I won't lie — this Clippers team looks exactly like a team that "just needs a star" to compete for a championship. They are No. 4 in defensive rating, and the No.23-ranked offense will benefit massively from Leonard's return. If Norman Powell keeps playing like an All-Star, Kris Dunn keeps playing like a DPOY and Kawhi Leonard can play like himself (23.7 points, 41 percent 3-point percentage last year) this team will be a tough, tough out in the playoffs.

The rest of the West is crumbling

Oklahoma City continues to shine. Memphis, Dallas and Houston are all a pace or two behind OKC. But the Kings just fired their coach after a 13-17 start. Phoenix is 7-14 in its last 21 games. Golden State is 3-12 in its last 15. Los Angeles is... just kind of "okay."

With Sacramento in freefall and the Lakers, Warriors and Suns all plateauing around "average," it might be time to put the Clips in the same tier as the top non-OKC Western Conference teams.

Scoffing at the Clippers is easy; they've had talented teams in the past, but something always gets in the way. But maybe retooling the team with role players — instead of another star — around James Harden and Kawhi Leonard was the right recipe all along.