Charles Barkley makes bold claim about surging James Harden and Clippers ahead of playoffs

As the end of the 2024-25 regular season fast approaches, the Oklahoma City Thunder have established themselves as the best team in the Western Conference. However, the discourse for the second-best team continues. Charles Barkley gave his take on this topic, boldly claiming that the LA Clippers fit this description.

During TNT’s halftime show for the Minnesota Timberwolves-Memphis Grizzlies game, Barkley announced that he was going to “say something crazy”.

“The Clippers might be the second-best team in the West,” Barkley said.

James Harden and co. are fifth in the West, tied with the #4 Denver Nuggets, with a 48-32 record. If all goes in their favor, they could enter the playoffs as the fourth seed, but they would statistically still not be the second-best team in the West.

Nevertheless, Charles Barkley isn't too far off with his assessment. There's no team in the West, barring the Thunder, in better form than the Clippers. Since March 5, Ty Lue’s boys have only lost three games. During this 19-game stretch, they have beaten several top-seeded teams, like the Cleveland Cavaliers, New York Knicks and Houston Rockets.

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Charles Barkley credits Kawhi Leonard for the Clippers’ success

Kawhi Leonard missed a large portion of the season due to a knee injury. The team greatly suffered in his absence, boasting a 24-21 record (.533 win rate). However, the Clippers have been a significantly better team since his return to the lineup, performing at a title-contender level with a 24-11 record (.685 win rate).

While dubbing the Clippers as the second-best team in the West, Charles Barkley had lofty compliments for the two-time champion. Implying that Leonard is a major reason behind the team’s recent surge, Barkley hilariously said:

“Kawhi Leonard is amazing to me, man. I've never seen a guy, never, who never plays basketball. Never. And comes back like he's been playing somewhere else. Like he's playing overseas and just came back and played here. Because he does not miss a beat.”

Leonard has been averaging 21 points, 5.9 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.6 steals per game. Fans can expect his production to increase in the playoffs, leading to a much more visually appealing stat line.