Isaiah Thomas admits Celtics still chasing Cavs: 'We're not on that level yet'

Star point man was honest about Boston in relation to Cleveland after Thursday loss

Although they missed out on the Kevin Durant sweepstakes, the offseason addition of All-Star Al Horford to an already-improving roster was supposed to aid the Celtics' quest to unseat the Cavs as the Eastern Conference's No. 1 team. But while Boston has played Cleveland tough at times, they have lost twice to the Cavs. And after losing 124-118 to the Cavs on Thursday, Isaiah Thomas expressed frustration.

Thomas told reporters that the Celtics are not on the same level as the Cavs.

From CBS Boston:

"We're not on that level yet," said Thomas, who scored 31 points to make it 17 straight games with 20 or more points. "We're not on Cleveland's level, so we got work to do. And we gotta figure it out."

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The real good teams, you make a mistake and they capitalize on it, whether it be the Cavs, the Warriors, the Spurs -- those type of teams don't let you live when you make a mistake," said Thomas. "We're not on that level yet."

The Celtics (19-14) have been one of the better teams in the East and are tied with the Hornets for third in the conference. But Boston hasn't been able to beat elite teams. The Celtics are 0-9 against teams with a better record, including East kingpins Cleveland and the Raptors.

Boston has talent. Horford is a four-time All-Star. Thomas is having another incredible season and could make his second straight All-Star Game. Jae Crowder and Avery Bradley are excellent defenders and solid offensive players. And then Boston has solid players like Marcus Smart and Kelly Olynyk, who bring their own set of intangibles.