Can the Los Angeles win a championship with the current roster? Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee/Image of Sport-US PRESSWIRE

Since the birth of sports, TV analysts, writers, commentators and local barbershops putting up trophy cases for their alma mater highschool, people have been looking at athletes or the teams they play for on paper.

In my estimation, it will never stop and probably shouldn’t. The art of predicting who will score more points than the other is one of those age-old traditions sporting events thrive on. If no one wanted to know if they were right, no one would watch.

The only thing I feel discouraged about people looking at teams on paper when it comes to the master question, “Who will win the championship?” is the little guys trying to climb to the top of the championship contender mountain from the valley of the average team are often overlooked or over-dissected.

This is the case with the Los Angeles Clippers.

Bleacher Report’s featured columnist Maxwell Ogden wrote a piece about how the Clippers could not win an NBA Championship because of Chris Paul’s unflattering postseason track record, the various injuries players on the Clippers’ roster have endured, the lack of front court depth, mediocre perimeter defense and the age of the small forwards.

Whew, I don’t think I’ve ever read something more wrong about the Clips. Do I think they’re a sure-fire NBA champ, no, but if everything went right could they be a contender and a real scare to the preseason top dogs in the Los Angeles Lakers and the Oklahoma City Thunder? Yes.

Paul has only been past the second round of the playoffs twice, including last season with the Clips. His postseason career is lackluster but not because of him, but because of what he was surrounded with. He didn’t have Shaquille O’Neal like Kobe Bryant, or vice-versa. He didn’t have Tim Duncan like Tony Parker did. He didn’t have a strong supporting role player like the Rockets, Lakers and Spurs in Robert Horry.

His days as a Celtic were in the twilight of his career, but before time caught up, he was one of the best big men to ever play in the NBA. Paul didn’t have him or anyone close.

Instead, he’s played on teams with a roster full of scrubs or slightly above average players. Before he came to LA, David West — a 2-time NBA All-Star — was the best player he played with. I would take Horry, Shaq and Kobes’ third option, or Duncan and Parkers’ option of Manu Ginobili over West any day.

The last time I checked, there wasn’t a list of players who can get hurt and those who can not. Injuries are never going to be known when it comes, to who it happens to, or when an injury happen. The only thing known about them is a crazy scientific name and what surgery will fix it when the injury does come.

Michael Jordan got hurt and the Bulls didn’t do so hot. Larry Bird got hurt. Magic Johnson retired from the game because of a virus. Yao Ming, Brandon Roy, Tracy McGrady, Penny Hardaway, Alonzo Mourning and the list could keep going, going and going. These things can happen to anyone and shouldn’t be a precursor to a team’s season in a season preview or a main point in an argument before the team has even played a game.

Anyone can get hurt.

The one part of Ogden’s argument I semi-agree with is the fact the Clippers’ front line isn’t overly impressive.

Blake Griffin is a star. DeAndre Jordan is a player who could blossom into something extraordinary or become compatible with Stephen Hunter (thanks Brett Roberts for the name drop the other day). Hunter was an NBA bust who had the athletic ability to become a star — similar to Jordan.

The bench of Ryan Hollins and Ronny Turiaf doesn’t excite fans or intimidate opponents. I agree with Ogden.

On the other hand, what was the last NBA Champion that relied on their front court past the main guys to win, the 2009-10 Los Angeles Lakers. The Miami Heat won because of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and a list of role players who knocked down big shots. The Dallas Mavericks were on the back of Dirk Nowitzki who leaned on Jason Terry, Jason Kidd and Shawn Marion when need-be.

LeBron James and the Miami Heat have Chris Bosh in the front court, but he wasn’t a huge factor in the NBA Finals. Without him, the Heat had no one in the front court. They won the NBA Championship. Mandatory Credit: Steve Mitchell-US PRESSWIRE

The Lakers in the 2010 NBA Finals would never had a chance without Pau Gasol and Andrew Bynum, but the year before they tore it up in the playoffs without Bynum — who was injured. Even the Boston Celtics in 2007-08 didn’t have much behind Kevin Garnet in the front court.

Turiaf is a big man who is hard to move, will grab rebounds and will hustle every minute he is in the game. Hollins is tall and lengthy with the ability to block shots or disrupt shots. I’m happy with this production in the front court of two players who will play less than 15 minutes a game.

Eric Bledsoe is a good defender. Paul is a good defender. Chauncey Billups is a good defender. Individually, none of them are premier perimeter defenders but if a guy gets past them, there is the shot blocking duo of Jordan and Griffin to help defend. Defense isn’t a one-on-one game, the statistical categories says team defense for a reason.

Now we have the funniest slam on the Clippers of all, aging small forwards who can no longer play the game.

The 39-year-old body of Grant Hill is more like 32-years-old since he did miss three years with ankle injuries. Since his injuries in the mid-2000′s he’s played starter minutes in a large number of games. In the three seasons prior to last year’s lockout season, Hill played in 80-plus games. He has never ended a season scoring less than 10 points per game.

Caron Butler has never scored less than 12 points a game except for his second year in the league when he put up 9.2 ppg in the 2003-04 season with the Miami Heat.

The Los Angles Clippers have players who can do everything needed on a basketball court at an extremely high level. The team doesn’t need to solely rely on Paul and Griffin to get things done because there are other players on the team who will produce. I think I’ve said this before: the Clippers have the deepest team in the league.

I didn’t even have to mention Jamal Crawford or Lamar Odom to say how good this team really could be. There are quality players all over the roster who could make this LA team just as much as a winner or beyond that of the Lakers.

At least on paper.

Lamar Odom was looking for the door in Dallas. He found it and is back in Los Angeles, but as a Clipper.

In the off-season, the Los Angeles Clippers did what few NBA franchises wanted to do after the Dallas Mavericks took Lamar Odom off of the court because he was unfocused and unproductive in the 2011-12 season — trade for Odom.

If Fully Clips’ poll has anything to say about the situation, fans think Odom is perfect for the Los Angeles Clippers as he is the 63% choice (as of Sept. 5 at 2 a.m. CST) for the question asking who was the best off-season pick up by the Clippers. He beat out Jamal Crawford, Grant Hill, Ronny Turiaf and Willie Green.

I hope he beat out the last two.

Personally, I agree, Odom can help this team and put them to next level. But he has to do it on the court, not with previous accomplishments such as the 2011 Sixth Man of the Year Award and two NBA Championships with the Los Angeles Lakers.

The only way anyone is going to find out if he is going to work out for the franchise is if he can positively answer the questions and hush the doubters about his basketball ability and his focus. Let’s face it, a player can have all the ability in the world, but if their mind isn’t in it, neither is production.

His mind left the basketball court last season because the Lakers dealt him to a rival team in the Mavs for basically nothing. It was almost like the Lakers were handing over a high-dollar  Rolex for absolutely nothing or making an attempt to pay back the league for their charity taking of Paul Gasol. I’m going with the first option.

Odom showed human emotion by clearly displaying an unease about his situation in Dallas and ultimately didn’t do anything on the court to prove different. The Mavericks eventually decided to not have him play or even sit on the bench, but kept him on the team for trade bait after the season was over.

Lamar Odom gets a hug from Kobe Bryant when they played each other in the 2011-12 season. Bryant said he didn't want Odom traded.

Now he is back in LA — where he wanted to be in the first place. The problem is, he is a Clipper, not a Laker. Is this going to be another situation Odom doesn’t like and will retaliate by throwing up his arms instead of catching the ball?

Everyone in the Staples Center wearing blue, red and white hope not.

The basketball world knows what one of the most versatile players in the league can do on the court. Unfortunately for Odom, we live in a “what have you done for me lately” society and if he doesn’t come with his A-game out the gate, he could be Allen Iversoned out of the league quickly. Odom’s situation proves once again, there is no such thing as job security in the NBA unless you’re an exception such as Michael Jordan or Kobe Bryant.

Another big question surrounding Odom for the upcoming season is whether he is going to be in basketball shape.

Taking a year off from NBA basketball isn’t easy to hop back into. Look at Nowitzki and Paul Pierce from last season — they only missed training camp.

Odom has been a finesse player for the duration of his career. He uses his athleticism, his speed for his size and stamina to be the type of player he is. Sitting out of NBA games to live a more normal American beer belly type of lifestyle is not going to pay any type of dividend for the Lakers or him. I’m not even saying Odom drinks beer, but sitting around the house or working out half as much as an everyday member of the NBA takes longer than a few weeks to get back to playing shape.

How dedicated is Odom to coming to the Clippers ready to play 25-to-30 minutes of great basketball four-to-five times a week?

I stand behind the Clippers 100% in their decision to get a deal done for Odom, but I do worry they could get burned in the end.