The NBA season is a little more than a month old. The Los Angeles Lakers and Los Angeles Clippers are looking up at another team in the standings: the Utah Jazz.

The Jazz sit atop the Western Conference standings and had won 10 in a row before losing to the Denver Nuggets on Sunday.

The question is, are the Jazz legitimate contenders in the Western Conference? Let's discuss.

Guard Play

Mitchell has been phenomenal in his young NBA career, and in just his third season he has the Jazz at first in the West after leading them to the playoffs last season. “Spida” is putting up career-highs in just about every category, and his attack mode is unlike any other player in the league.

He is the heart and soul of this Jazz team, and if they want to compete come playoff time, he will need to play at a high level. Mitchell is averaging 23.4 points with 4.4 rebounds and 4.9 assists.

Mike Conley has looked good this year, to the surprise of many. He is averaging 16.8 points per game on 45 percent from the field and a career-high 41.8 percent from three-point land to go with 6.1 assists.

He can still orchestrate the offense and takes a huge load of pressure off of the shoulders of Mitchell, allowing him to do what he does best which is score the basketball.

Jordan Clarkson has been the biggest surprise from this Jazz squad and is in the driver's seat for the NBA Sixth Man of the Year award. Clarkson is averaging career-highs in points (17.9) field goal percentage (46.8) free throw percentage (97.1) and rebounds (4.7).

He has found a home in Utah after bouncing around for a few years and provides huge scoring off the bench which allows Mitchell and Conley to not need to play huge minutes every game.

Clarkson has also scored double-digits in all but one game in the month of January, and his play can be a huge reason to the success of the Jazz and their 11-game win streak that ended against the Denver Nuggets on Sunday.

Wings and Bigs

Rudy Gobert is always in the running for Defensive Player of the Year, and that's no surprise. He is having another stellar campaign for the Jazz with averages of 13.6 points and a career-high in blocks (2.7) and rebounds (14.1).

Derrick Favors has settled into his role on the bench and provides quality minutes with the second unit, but it's Royce O'Neale who has been a huge part of the success of the Jazz.

O'Neale has been thrust into the starting lineup and has had no issues, which really allows Gobert to clog the middle for the Jazz and be a pest for opposing teams. O'Neale has also put up career-highs in just about every category, including points, rebounds, and field goal percentage.

Bojan Bogdanovic has regressed a little bit from 2019, but the improved play of Conley, Clarkson, and Mitchell probably have a lot to do with that Joe Ingles still provides quality minutes off the bench, and the Jazz have been one of the most unselfish teams in the entire NBA, something that will be key if they want to make a deep run in the talented Western Conference.

The Outcome

The cohesiveness of this Utah team is a huge reason why they jumped out to first in the Western Conference and rattled off an 11-game winning streak that ended on Sunday, thanks to Nikola Jokic going insane with 47 points for the Denver Nuggets.

The Clippers and Lakers are the class of the West, but the Jazz could give them a run for their money come playoff time.

They have solid depth, play unselfish basketball, and have a superstar in the making in Mitchell. Conley provides the veteran presence they lacked a few years back, and Gobert is a mismatch for nearly every team in the league except for a select few.

It's certainly not out of the picture, and the latest winning streak was as impressive as it gets, but they have their work cut out for them.

Nonetheless, Quin Snyder has this team playing terrific basketball, and against good teams too. They have come a long way since their run in the bubble, and the taste of the 3-1 blown lead against the same Nuggets in the first round is still fresh in their minds, so revenge is needed.

If Mitchell and Conley keep playing at this level, and Gobert and O'Neale do what they do on a nightly basis, it's possible that the Jazz can make a trip to the Western Conference Finals, and they could potentially poise serious problems against either Staples Center host.