Knowing luck had kissed him on the forehead, Isaiah Thomas let off a telling smirk.

With a five-point lead midway through the fourth quarter Monday night, the Boston Celtics star had lifted off his feet to shoot a 3-pointer but realized in midair he should probably do anything else. Because Dwight Powell contested the shot perfectly, Thomas switched his plans while two or three feet above the court. He meant to hit Jae Crowder with a sidearm pass, I think, but the ball skidded past Crowder and into the opposite corner, where the fortunate Kelly Olynyk caught it and launched a 3-pointer through the rim. The Mavericks must have wanted to throw bricks through the closest window. Thomas delivers enough damage with intentional plays. It's unfair when his mistakes help the Celtics, too.

When you're running well, pocket pairs all seem to turn into sets on the flop and misplaced passes sometimes veer toward knockdown shooters standing all alone. Since dropping the hilariously hyped "Funeral Game," the Celtics -- who went on to down the Mavericks, 111-98 -- have won 10 of their last 11 games, all without normal starting shooting guard Avery Bradley. In the process they have surged past the Toronto Raptors, held off the storming Washington Wizards, and started to wonder about catching the Cleveland Cavaliers for the top seed in the Eastern Conference.

At the very least, Thomas is looking ahead of his team in the standings. Mavericks head coach Rick Carlisle took things one step further:

Rick Carlisle on the Celtics: "They have a legitimate chance to get to the (NBA) Finals through the East with that team." — Tim Cato (@tim_cato) February 14, 2017

Because Carlisle is the first head coach to say that publicly (I think), this seems like a good time to discuss whether the Celtics can actually win the Eastern Conference this season. Over the following 22 thoughts I ramble, blabber, and hope to provide some semblance of reasonable analysis.

1. Winning the East is possible, of course. The Celtics currently sit two games behind the first-place Cavaliers, who have looked vulnerable at times, and who are now concerned about the health of Kevin Love's knee. Though LeBron James has won what feels like 150 straight Eastern Conference championships, this does not feel -- right now -- like one of his best teams.

2. It should be noted that the Cavaliers, at this point last season, actually had a worse record than they do now. We all know how that ended -- and we don't need to think back to the Finals turnaround for evidence this year's Cavaliers can run over opponents. They stampeded across the earth when fully healthy earlier this season and still star the greatest player of his generation. Any team with James will be the East favorite until a conference opponent proves it can knock him off. And Love and Kyrie Irving are pretty damn good, too.

3. Reminder: Just eight months ago, Cleveland overcame a 3-1 deficit in the NBA Finals to drive a lightning bolt the 73-win Golden State Warriors. The Cavs are great.

4. Another reminder: The Celtics have not won a playoff series under Brad Stevens.

5. But this is a different Celtics team. Thomas' remarkable climb (he came off the bench at the beginning of last year!) has lifted his club's ceiling. Adding Al Horford changed things, too, and internal development elsewhere has helped turn the offense into a true powerhouse. Since Thomas returned from an injury on Dec. 16 (essentially: since he started stomping on every defense's skull), the Celtics have scored 112.3 points per 100 possessions, which would trail only the Warriors for the full season.

6. Recently, those numbers (and Boston's defensive resistance) have only improved. Still, the Celtics don't own the statistical profile of a potential champion. In fact, their defense still barely cracks the top 20. Their net rating (+3.4) falls shy of their net rating from last season at this time (+3.9). Boston has experienced among the worst injury luck in the NBA, which matters, but has also relied on Thomas and the booming offense to pull out a load of close wins.

7. While a greater margin of victory would be nice, the Celtics' fourth-quarter offense has been stunning. No team in NBA.com's media database (which dates back to 2000-'01) has ever matched the 119.8 fourth-quarter offensive rating Boston currently owns. Only months after a spotty half-court offense doomed them to an early playoff exit, the Celtics now crush opponents in the half-court. I assume that's a positive sign for the playoffs. So is Horford's versatility, which sets him apart from his predecessor, Jared Sullinger, who played sparingly during the 2016 first round because of a bad matchup (against Horford's Hawks).

8. Speaking of the playoffs, the Celtics currently own a 30-percent chance of landing the top seed in the East and a five percent chance of winning a title, according to FiveThirtyEight's latest projections.

9. Feel free to insert a Dumb and Dumber joke here.

10. Whatever the numbers say at the moment, navigating the East will be tough when the postseason arrives. The Cavs are the Cavs. The Wizards have been as hot as any team over the last month-plus. The Raptors will be dangerous and experienced assuming they snap out of their current skid (which they should). The Celtics won't just need to beat LeBron, but he'll probably be waiting in the Eastern Conference Finals if they get there. Gulp.

11. Maybe the Celtics won't advance that far, but they have played more complete ball lately. Over the last 11 games, they rank No. 6 in both defensive rebounding and overall defense. If they can stay close to that pace in those categories, their net rating will look more favorable by the time the playoffs arrive. The Celtics offense is dynamite. It really is.

12. Part of the reason why: all their big men can shoot -- even Amir Johnson, who is now hitting 40.9 percent of his 3-point attempts. He doesn't launch a lot, but he's capable from deep. With the exception of Tyler Zeller, all the other Celtics bigs are better outside shooters.

13. Because of how much the frontcourt shooting spaces the floor, the Celtics might need to be careful if they chase a rebounder at the trade deadline. Adding a physical presence would help in some ways, but it's likely the outside shooting -- and, thus, the offensive formula -- would suffer as a result. (Then again, a strong big to meet LeBron at the rim and seal Tristan Thompson off the glass would be nice against the Cavs.)

14. With Thomas and Marcus Smart on the floor, the offensive formula has been just fine lately:

The Celtics have a stupidly good 122.8 ORtg with Isaiah Thomas and Marcus Smart on the court over the last 11 games (235 total minutes). — Jay King (@ByJayKing) February 14, 2017

15. Considering how well those two have played together (and a number of other factors), exploring the Avery Bradley trade market does not sound crazy right now. He, Smart and Thomas will all be up for new contracts at the end of next season. Keeping all three of the guards may not be feasible.

16. Sorry for getting off track here, but overreacting to a tiny sample size would not be wise. Always an elite on-ball perimeter defender, Bradley has turned himself into a knockdown outside shooter with solid ball skills. There's no doubt he's a helpful player.

17. There's still a legitimate question to be asked about his long-term future in Boston, I think. Next to Thomas (who is tiny) and Horford (whose biggest flaw is rebounding), the Celtics could value length and physicality at the other spots. Bradley brings a lot to the table, but, like Thomas, lacks size for his position. That could matter if, one day, the choice comes down to Smart or Bradley.

18. One other observation for the stacked Celtics backcourt, which could grow even more crowded after the NBA Draft this summer: Jaylen Brown has looked plenty comfortable punishing smaller defenders on the low block. Versatility will let the rookie contribute at a number of positions, but shooting guard might be his best long-term spot.

19. Please note: Roster fit can change quickly, which is partly why the Celtics should avoid rushing into anything hasty based on one hot February run. Another reason why: Just in case another team decides to part ways with a top player, holding on to trade chips and flexibility seems like the right call. Making a run this year would be cool, but, with such great long-term possibilities, the front office should aim to maximize the odds of sustainable contention.

20. On that front, I wonder how much Thomas' spaceship ride into the MVP conversation could change future plans in Boston. The organization viewed him as a sixth man not too long ago, but he has obliterated all reasonable expectations and somehow positioned himself as a candidate to join the Steve Nash/Stephen Curry club for supremely skilled point guards who blew up into superstars years into their careers.

21. Thomas is only a candidate for that club, not a member of it. Nash and Curry have both performed at the highest level for more than a few months. Thomas has not done that yet. But seriously, check out his stats this year vs. Curry's in his first MVP season. Offensively, at least, the two seasons are comparable. In some ways, Thomas has produced more with similar efficiency.

22. I'm off track again. I meant to write about the Celtics' postseason chances. Now I'm rambling about Thomas' recent run. Of course, the two topics are linked. Though they will (and should) be considered long shots if they meet LeBron, the Celtics keep scoring and winning and should be a tough out even if they decline to upgrade their roster before the deadline.