The Golden State Warriors are still considered by many as the favorites to defend their crown this season. However, there are more than a few teams that are expected to mount a serious challenge against Stephen Curry and Co., and one of them happens to be the Los Angeles Clippers.

Matt Barnes, who himself has played for both the Warriors and the Clippers, shared his two cents worth on a recent episode of his What's Burnin' podcast with co-host Stephen Jackson. When talking about the title favorites this season, Barnes named both Golden State and LA as his two picks:

“I think the Golden State Warriors and the Clippers,” Barnes said. “It would be history for the Clippers. … The one thing about that team is that everybody knows their roles. Adding John Wall, to me the deepest team in the league is the Clippers. So, you gotta beat the champs, but if anyone in the Western Conference can beat the champs in the Western Finals, it could be the Clippers.”

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Barnes points out an excellent point about the Clippers having depth on their roster. As he said, the arrival of former five-time All-Star John Wall, who could come off the bench behind starting point guard Reggie Jackson, was a tremendous addition to a Clippers side that has major title aspirations this year. The one thing that is standing in their way, it seems, is their health. Wall is coming off a full season on the shelf due to injury, and we are all well aware of the injury history of superstars Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.

The Warriors, on the other hand, have a new-look roster, with a handful of their role players moving on last summer. Their core is still intact, though, and based on what we saw from them on opening night against Lebron James and the Los Angeles Lakers, the Dubs clearly won't be messing aorund this year.