Column: Celtics getting hot, right on time

In sports, many teams with playoff experience talk of the ability to “flip the switch” and… In sports, many teams with playoff experience talk of the ability to “flip the switch” and play their best when it “truly counts.” The flaw in this logic is that each game — at least during the regular season — counts the same, whether it’s in the win or loss column.

More often than not, the cliche is often used as an excuse for a team’s unsavory play until that team begins performing the way people expect it to. Growing up as a Lakers fan, I experienced this for four years in a row when Kobe, Shaq and Co. would lag through the regular season and then tear everyone’s hearts out in the playoffs.

That being said …

The Boston Celtics have flipped the proverbial switch. And for a team that considers itself a serious playoff contender, it’s about time.

Disclaimer: As a Laker fan, I hate the Celtics more than anyone can understand. Yes, even more than yinzers hate Philly and vice versa. Being a part of arguably the greatest rivalry in all of sports, I can’t imagine an NBA Playoff Tournament without the Celtics on the other side of the bracket, allowing for the chance of another L.A.-Boston NBA Finals being recorded in the annals of history.

At the beginning of the season, I believed the Celtics and General Manager Danny Ainge should have blown the team up by trading at least Ray Allen and maybe even Kevin Garnett. They made my thoughts look good by starting 5-9, including both three- and five-game losing streaks.

After clawing their way above .500 by mid-February, the Celtics suffered another five-game losing streak to fall to 15-17 on the year. Although three of those losses were to powerhouses like the Dallas Mavericks, Oklahoma City Thunder and Chicago Bulls, the C’s also dropped two games to the lowly Pistons.

Normally, being 32 games into a season with a record slightly below .500 would not cause concern for a team like the Celtics. But such comfort would come from looking forward to the rest of an 82-game season, not the lockout-shortened 66-game season of this year.

As a team with mettle tested in the playoffs, the Celtics responded as expected. Beginning with a five-game win streak to counter the recent losing streak, the Celtics are 18-7 since Feb. 28.

The great play as of late, coupled with the Philadelphia 76ers playing their worst basketball all year — 10-13 since the All-Star Break — have the Celtics in the lead of the Atlantic Division and a hold on the Eastern Conference’s fourth seed by three and a half games.

And as the “flipping the switch” proverb goes, the Celtics are certainly playing their best basketball and getting better as the playoffs approach. At 8-2 in their past 10 games, Boston has the best record of any Eastern Conference team over that stretch.

Most importantly, Boston is beating some of the best the conference has to offer. Tuesday, the Celtics took their collective talents to South Beach and knocked off an early NBA Finals favorite, the Miami Heat, 115-107.

Sunday, the Celtics beat the 76ers in dominating fashion, laying a 24-point beatdown on their divisional rivals, 103-79. The day before, Boston defeated the Indiana Pacers — the conference’s current three-seed — in Conseco Fieldhouse by 14, a performance demonstrating shades of the defensive dominance displayed back in the 2007-2008 season when the Celtics took the Larry O’Brien trophy back to Boston.

Prior to that, the Celtics lost heartbreakers to two of the league’s best teams, the Bulls and the Spurs. On April 5, the Bulls pulled away in the final minutes to secure an 83-86 victory. The night before, the Spurs won by a single point, 87-86.

The two losses ended a five-game winning streak for Boston that featured another win against the Miami Heat, this one coming at home and with a 19-point margin of victory.

With nine games remaining in Boston’s season, the team trails the Pacers by two games for the third seed. Acquiring this would be advantageous for the Celtics as it would allow them to avoid a second-round matchup with the Bulls, which would be likely if Boston were to remain in the fourth seed, barring an upset of the Bulls as the No. 1 seed.

If it maintains its current seed, Boston will most likely face the Atlanta Hawks in the first round. If they acquire the three seed, the Celtics would most likely face the Magic. Although arguably a tougher out than the Hawks, beating the Magic would lead to a relatively easier road to the Finals for the Celtics. The first matchup would mean the second-round would most likely pit Boston against Miami, a team against which the Celtics have experienced much more success than they have against the Bulls.