The most random 'source' possible just provided an interesting Kawhi 'update'

Fans of the LA Clippers have been waiting seemingly forever to see their best player suit up once again. Kawhi Leonard has been out since the start of the season, and updates about the swelling in his knee have been few and far between.

But earlier this week, footage leaked of Leonard getting some shots up at Intuit Dome, and looking pretty close to his normal self. This likely led to increased optimism for many, but the fact remains that we have still not received any substantial updates regarding a timeline for his return. The last concrete piece of information we got was Shams Charania saying he would "be missing weeks," and that was near the end of October.

While not an official update from the team, the latest insight into when we could see Kawhi back on the court came from NBA podcaster and tenured analyst Bill Simmons. Speaking on the latest episode of his podcast, Simmons revealed that "his Clippers guy" had given him some information.

"My Clippers guy was telling me Kawhi's coming back before Christmas," said Simmons. "I think he's ramped up. He's ramped up and ready to go." Some will hear this and feel excitement, but it is best we stop to consider a few things.

Unnamed source says Kawhi will be back before Christmas

Could this unnamed source be from within the team and be 100% legitimate? Sure. But the way that this "source" was presented to us gives us no real reason to feel confident that they definitely know what they are talking about.

"My Clippers guy" could just mean Bill's friend in Los Angeles who works at Enterprise and happens to be a Clippers fan. I do not doubt that Simmons has some NBA sources within various teams around the league given how long he has been around, but given that no credentials were offered here, we cannot assume anything.

With all that said, a mid-to-late December return for Kawhi Leonard would be a solid outcome for the Clippers. The initial reports concerning his knee problems from before the season probably made many think he would be back sooner, but any scenario where Leonard comes back before the New Year feels like a win at this point.

In large part, this is because of how well LA has performed in his absence. The general consensus prior to mid-October was that the Clippers would take a big step back and be far out of the playoff picture by the time their best player was back in the picture. As of this writing, LA sits at 14-10 and sixth in the West. Should Kawhi come back at full strength anytime soon like this report suggests, Clipper nation would be in for a treat.