NBA Rumors: J.R. Smith Would Cement LA Clippers as Western Conference Favorite

With guard Chauncey Billups' status for the rest of the season in doubt due to an Achilles injury, the Los Angeles Clippers could use some reinforcements. With that in mind, their best bet would be signing shooting guard J.R. Smith at the conclusion of his Chinese season.

According to Broderick Turner of the Los Angeles Times, the Clippers will likely pursue Smith when he becomes available. They recently signed his former Denver Nuggets teammate Kenyon Martin, who was also playing in China. The Clippers would be able to use their mini-mid-level exception of $2.5 million.

There is no guarantee that Billups' Achilles is ruptured, so there is certainly a possibility that he will be back this season. Regardless of whether he is or not, though, bringing in Smith will make the Clippers the favorite to come out of the Western Conference.

The Clippers already have a formidable starting lineup that includes DeAndre Jordan, Blake Griffin, Caron Butler and Chris Paul. Martin gives them excellent frontcourt depth, and Smith would be the perimeter scorer off the bench that they sorely lack.

Mo Williams is obviously a threat off the bench as he is averaging 14.5 points per game, but if Billups is out for any period of time Williams will likely be thrust into a starting role. Perhaps Smith has been a selfish or undisciplined player in the past, but he has the potential to be the best bench scorer in the league.

Smith averaged at least 12.3 points per game in five straight seasons in Denver, and in four of those seasons he made more than two 3-pointers per game. With Griffin garnering plenty of attention on the low block and Paul distributing the basketball, Smith figures to get plenty of open looks.

As the Dallas Mavericks proved last season, it isn't possible to have too much depth. The Clippers are well aware of that with Billups in question, so there's no reason not to bring Smith in. It's a bonus that his skill set happens to perfectly complement the rest of the roster.

As things currently sit, the Clippers are second in the conference behind the Oklahoma City Thunder. It admittedly won't be easy to take down the Kevin Durant-led Thunder, but Smith adds a new dimension to the Clippers' offense that may be too much for Oklahoma City or any other team to handle.

Smith isn't going to help whatever deficiencies the Clippers have on defense, but that has never been his game. The point of signing him is to add some punch to the second unit and to have somebody readily available if the offense is stagnant.

Signing Smith may seem like an irrelevant move to some, but he is an offensive spark plug that any team would benefit from. If Smith can provide between 12 and 15 points off the bench as he has in each of the past five seasons, then the Clippers will be an incredibly tough team to beat.