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Last Sunday night, the Boston Celtics went into the Target Center and shot 33 percent against the No. 1 shooting team in the league. They got crunched on the boards. They scored a mere 80 points against the No. 9 scoring team in the league.

Of course, they won the game.

Such is life when the glass is half full, as it most definitely is these days for the once pathetic Celtics. Their victory Tuesday night in the World's Most Famous Sports Arena over The League's Most Overrated Team was their sixth straight for their longest win streak of the season. They aren't ready to challenge the Pacers, Pistons or Nets, but they also don't appear to be threatening to undertake the Bulls, Hawks or Wizards, either.

Only a month ago, they were in a stretch where they had lost 13 of 14 games, had no spirit, no cohesion, no oomph and a coach who was widely perceived to define the term "interim." Danny Ainge, the man charged with assembling this wreck, hinted that he'd just as soon get a high draft pick then a low playoff seed. All signs pointed to Secaucus, N.J.

Then, something happened. Well, actually, a few things happened, some of them predictable and some of them utterly unpredictable. The Celtics are still a far cry from a lock to make the playoffs. But what they appear to have done is committed themselves to finishing out the season as best as they can, rather than have their bags packed in anticipation of the first flight out of town on April 15.

The first, most noticeable change came in the form of a schedule break that allowed the team to catch its collective breath and play some of the Eastern Conference lowlifes, of which there are quite a few. Having lost seven in a row -- but still, of course, in the thick of the ridiculous Eastern Conference "race" -- the Celtics ended up with two straight games against a Toronto team that did not have Vince Carter, Jalen Rose or Alvin Williams.

Even the Celtics capitalized on that. They then got Orlando -- 'nuff said -- at home and without Juwan Howard. (Not that Howard's presence would have changed much.) The Celtics blew out the Magic with a 25-0 run in the fourth quarter, and then waited three days for the arrival of the Wizards. At that point, Washington was playing reasonably well, albeit riding the sore shoulders of Gilbert Arenas. The Celtics won that game (not leading until the fourth quarter) and then went into Minnesota and somehow won a game despite going more than 7½ minutes without a point in one quarter and missing 13 of 14 shots in another.

"I think our success was helpful in lifting our spirits a bit," interim coach John Carroll said. "It has developed a kind of togetherness in terms of how to go out and win games."

The win Tuesday over the Knicks was sweet as well, given that New York had beaten the Celtics three times already (and thus still has the first tiebreaker.) But the schedule remains difficult, with the Lakers, Pacers, Nuggets, Spurs and Mavericks all on the immediate horizon.

The second change, and maybe the most critical one, is the arrival of Chucky Atkins to play the point. Atkins may not be your classic point guard, but he is an upgrade over what the Celtics had at the position (Mike James.) Atkins came with a heavy price tag ($8.7 million for next year and the year after) which made the deal with Detroit all the more puzzling (not to mention giving the Pistons the wiggle room they needed for this summer.)

But he can play the point. And the Celtics have been trying to play the game without a point guard for the last two years, or since trading Kenny Anderson to Seattle in the Vin Baker deal. (How'd that one work out?) In other words, he's better than anyone else they've had at the position -- and it has shown.

Atkins has played point guard in pressure situations for the Pistons (although Celtics fans remember Anderson abusing him in the 2002 conference semis.) He provides a steady hand and he relieves the overworked Paul Pierce of the chore of setting up the offense. He's also been known to make a few big shots now and then. While the cost-effectiveness ratio may still be up in the air, and while Atkins' play is keeping Ainge's prized rookie, Marcus Banks, on the bench, there is little doubt that the immediate returns are more than favorable.

"He's been a great acquisition," lauded Pierce. "He's a great, veteran leader out there."

Then there has been the recent play of center Mark Blount, who, if the season lasted another month, would be able to make a strong case for Most Improved Player. As it is, he is miles ahead of last season, when he split time with Tony Battie. But once Ainge dealt Battie to Cleveland (a deal which brought back Chris Mihm), it has been all Blount, all the time. Carroll is so reliant on Blount he once played him 48 minutes.

Blount had 15 points and 17 rebounds against the Knicks and has been a double-double machine basically since the All-Star break. Against the Wolves, he managed to go scoreless and still impact the game with his rebounding (11) and a big block on Kevin Garnett at the end of the game.

Once seen as pretty much one-dimensional (defensive intimidator), Blount has developed a very serviceable offensive game, including a 12-to-15 foot jumper he's unafraid to take when left open, as he is quite often. He's also getting more aggressive taking the ball to the basket, as the Knicks saw in the final minute of their loss to Boston.

Blount also will be a free agent this summer (he simply has to exercise an opt-out, negating next season's measly $1.09 million) and he is bound to attract a lot of suitors, especially in the center-deprived East. He's made no secret that he doesn't like the way this season has developed and he is loyal to former coach Jim O'Brien, who is bound to surface somewhere. The Celtics may simply decide they can't afford to keep him and hold onto Mihm and Raef LaFrentz.

Carroll also deserves a lot of credit for not allowing the ship to sink. He likes to refer to himself as a "dead man walking" after the headline in a recent ESPN.com story about the fruitlessness of his mission. No one thinks he has any shot of returning next season, but he is getting players to play together and win in an impossible situation. That's not going to hurt his reputation or his resume, especially when it looked like it was going to go the other way.

Hey, they know who they are. They're still well under .500 in a conference with only a handful of winning teams (and just one in their division.) They won 44 games last season and Ainge didn't like the product. He is not really concerned about what happens over the next five weeks, but the same can't be said for the players and coaching staff. They have decided to do what they can to make the playoffs for the third straight year.

That might not jibe with Ainge's long-term vision, but, for now, the short-term view is a lot more appetizing than it was a month ago.

Peter May, who covers the NBA for the Boston Globe, is a regular contributor to ESPN.com.