James Harden downgraded injury status for Clippers-Thunder

When Kawhi Leonard had to miss a significant amount of time to start the season, many people in the media immediately wrote off the LA Clippers as a serious team in the Western Conference. Due to the loss of Paul George, the Clippers started the season relying on an aging James Harden and what appeared to be an assortment of role players.

Flash forward to today, this Clippers roster still doesn’t have Leonard back, and they’re set to face the first-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder in a matchup of the first and sixth seeds in the Western Conference. Along with Norman Powell’s rise to an All-Star caliber player and Ivica Zubac’s two-way consistency, the Clippers are where they are because of Harden’s all-around efforts.