James Harden voices belief in Clippers; 'blessed' to be in L.A. - ESPN

INGLEWOOD, Calif. — Less than a month ago, James Harden and the LA Clippers were near the bottom of the Western Conference standings with very little to feel optimistic about.

But after their fourth win in a row, 119-105 over the Washington Wizards on Wednesday night at the Intuit Dome, and their 11th win in their past 13 games — the best record in the NBA during that span — Harden told ESPN he thinks the Clippers could «come all the way back.»

Back into playoff contention would be quite a feat considering how poorly the Clippers started the season. At one point, they were 6-21 with nothing but a series of controversies to show for a season that began with great expectations.

«Some teams, when it gets that bad, they just let the wheels fall off,» Harden said. «I had interviews where people were asking me, 'How do you find confidence?' and I'm like, 'The confidence is there. The losses are frustrating, but the confidence is still there.'

»I think finding little tweaks and being a lot better defensively is what really helped us out.… Now we got to take one game at a time, just like when we were in the hole. We can come all the way back, but we have to chip away, chip away and really build some momentum going into the All-Star break."

The Clippers are currently a half-game behind the Memphis Grizzlies for 10th place and the final spot in the play-in tournament.

Harden and Kawhi Leonard are hoping to be a part of All-Star Weekend on Feb. 13-15 at the Intuit Dome. Both are strong candidates after this recent surge. Leonard is averaging 32.7 points, 6.9 rebounds and 2.6 steals during this 11-2 run. Harden is averaging 24.8 points and 7.8 assists.

«We talk probably more than anybody,» Harden said of Leonard. «Once I see him