Saving their best for last

Now the naysayers (you know who you are) claim the same malaise has infected the 2009-10 Celtics. Some of the nattering nabobs are projecting a shocker in the form of a first-round playoff exit next month.

Not me. I see what the Celtics are doing. The Green are Going Green. The NBA’s Team AARP is also Team Energy Conservation.

One day after a nationally televised dubious defeat in Cleveland, the Celtics were back home last night, back on national TV (ESPN) against the going-nowhere Detroit Pistons. Reminding their fans they still can dominate, the Celtics raced to a 31-15 lead in the first quarter and blew it out to 64-35 at halftime. It was 80-49 with 6:17 left in the third. The Celtics shot 62 percent and won, 119-93. It was one of those games that reminded you how good they can be. So what if they were playing at home against the moribund Pistons.

“It was a great game to sit back and look at and say, ‘This is what we are,’ ’’ said Kevin Garnett.

Amen, KG. This is what you are. Still one of the most talented teams in the basketball universe.

Before the game, coach Doc Rivers was asked about lack of effort in Sunday’s loss. He defended his veteran stars, insisting there was effort, at least until they gave up late in the fourth quarter.

This can’t be easy for Rivers. He claims he is having fun, but it’s got to be a nightmare to motivate these guys as they wait for the real games to start.

Rivers admits nobody is afraid of his team anymore, but like his galaxy of fading stars, he believes they can put it together in the playoffs.

And I’m still buying.