The Boston Celtics got back on the winning track on Tuesday against the Raptors, but it didn’t help them much at the top of the East standings.

That’s because of a Cleveland Cavaliers team that has sustained a red-hot start and looks like as big of a threat to Boston as any team in the league right now.

The Cavaliers improved to 3-0 on their west coast road swing Tuesday with a double-digit win over the Lakers. They’ve won all three games on their trip by double-digits against formidable playoff opponents (Nuggets, Warriors, Lakers) and have now won eight straight overall. That’s tied with the third-seeded Knicks as the two longest streaks in the NBA right now.

After running away with the Eastern Conference last season in February, the Celtics are very much at risk of suffering the opposite fate with an imposing schedule looming in January. Boston has played a very home friendly schedule so far (19 at TD Garden, 14 on road), the most home games out of any team in the East. They’ve also played a softer schedule as a whole with just four games against West opponents.

That all changes for the Celtics in January with two four-game road trips against likely West playoff teams. The Celtics already are five games behind the red-hot Cavaliers in the standings and would do well this month if they could prevent the Cavs from opening up an even bigger lead.

The Cavs started the season with a 15-0 run and now are on pace to win 72 games. They are fully healthy now under Kenny Atkinson and only have one long road trip remaining this season (four games or more). Currently, they hold the best offense in the NBand their defense (seventh in NBA) also ranks ahead of the Celtics.

The Celtics certainly wouldn’t be afraid of the Cavaliers – even without having home-court advantage – this postseason, but the fact they could fall out of the race so early in the year is a bit jarring. With the Knicks looming just one game behind in the standings amid an eight-game winning streak of their own, the challenges are starting to pile up for Boston.

The good news for Joe Mazzulla and company is that the Celtics have been a better road team (11-3) than home team (13-6) so far this season. With plenty of high-profile opponents to get up for in the coming weeks away from the Garden, the Celtics should be fully engaged and better equipped to find out where they stand in a competitive Eastern Conference.

EVEN AMID SOME recent struggles, the Celtics did what they had to do with a 125-71 win against the Raptors. They blew out a shorthanded, scuffling team by 54 points on New Year’s Eve, shaking off those inconsistencies that have bogged them down in recent games.

There were few complaints from the blowout win as the Celtics improved to 24-9 on the season. Most notably, the Celtics flexed their greatest trait: their depth. The cast of talent is good enough for a championship as anybody can step up at any given moment.

The Celtics guards led the way through much of the win. Jrue Holiday made his return after a three-game absence and his defense was immediately impactful. Derrick White was also active on his way to four blocks. Then, of course, there’s the flamethrower off the bench in Payton Pritchard. The trio combined for 49 points and shot 12 of 16 on 3-pointers.

“Water’s going to find its level,” Pritchard said. “If you look around the locker room, the amount of talent and how many good players we have, there’s no way you’re just going to keep shooting bad. Especially the shots we’re generating. You just trust the process and things will work out in our favor.”

Boston missed plenty of shots in the first half, but the defense didn’t let up as the Celtics led 45-35 at halftime. But they blew the game open in the third quarter, outscoring the Raptors 45-18. While the guards were great, Jayson Tatum’s 18 points in the third quarter were also a huge part of sprinting ahead of the visitors.

The reserves also came in and put up 35 of their own points in the fourth quarter. But the Celtics should beat teams like the Raptors. With a challenging month ahead, coach Joe Mazzulla said it is a great opportunity for his squad.

“As a competitor, this is going to be a great challenge,” Pritchard said. “Really looking forward to it. We play a lot of good opponents. But this isn’t like necessarily the championship, but it’s preparing for it. Moments like this, you gotta go to war and get better. Hopefully we win every game. But if we lose, it’s preparation. It’s building for what’s to come in the future.”

The process was sound throughout Tuesday’s win. Even when the Celtics shot 37.5% in the first half, they earned multiple open looks that didn’t go down. The defense was also pesky as the Raptors never looked comfortable offensively. Mazzulla talked about upping the activity level, and that’s exactly what the Celtics did in the win.

So, the Celtics did what they were supposed to do against the 7-26 Raptors. But as Mazzulla preaches, it’s about the process and having a growth mindset every day.

“Every season is a little different,” White said. “Every season is gonna have ups, every season is gonna have downs. It’s not gonna be exactly like it was last year. And so we understand that, and we just got to understand that there’s a lot that we can improve on. We got to continue to get better.”