Are These Detroit Pistons The Worst NBA Team Of All Time?

It's been a rough time for fans of the Detroit Pistons. They barely made the playoffs in 2019, and since then, it's been all downhill. But this season is particularly bad.

They've now tied the single-season record for consecutive losses, and are on pace to break all other losing streaks before the end of the year. But, could this not only be the worst Pistons team of all time, but the worst NBA team ever?

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Detroit Pistons' Recent History of Sadness

The last time the Pistons made the playoffs was in 2019. The finished 8th in the Eastern Conference, and after a 4-0 sweep courtesy of the Bucks, they ended that year with a .500 record. The last time they finished above .500 was in 2016, when again, they barely made the playoffs, and got swept by LeBron's second run with the Cavaliers, who would go on to win the title.

In fact, if you want to find the last time the Pistons were even competitive, it's well over a decade ago. In 2008, they finished first in the East and won their first two rounds over the 76ers and Magic, but lost to the Celtics in the Conference Finals. They went on to win an NBA title as well.

Since that saeson, the Pistons have sucked with only the 2016 season ending over .500.

Losing Records

As of writing this, the Pistons are tied for the most consecutive losses in a single season - 26. A second loss to the Nets on Tuesday would give them the single-season record with 27 straight losses, and should they continue the streak through the end of 2023, the Pistons will have 29 straight losses, giving them the longest loss streak ever in the NBA, surpassing even those that spanned across two seasons.

You'd think it can't get much worse, but unfortunately, it can.

If the Pistons do follow through, they will also see one of the worst calendar-year records for an NBA team. Not counting Preseason games, the Detroit Pistons will have only won 9 games the entire 2023 calendar year.

To put that into perspective, the Detroit Lions have won 11 games THIS SEASON. So even if the Pistons DO manage to win these next three games, the Lions will have more wins in 2023 than the Pistons.

And yet, there's still room for another losing record for the Pistons. If they keep this pace, winning one out of every 14 games played, the Pistons could wind up with a 6-76 season, which would be the worst NBA record of all time, surpassing the Philadelphia 76ers who finished 9-73 in the 1972-73 season.

So is this the worst Detroit Pistons team of all time? At the moment, yes, and if they don't change something real soon, it will absolutely become a reality.

But of course, if we are sacrificing a terrible Pistons team for a winning Lions team, then maybe the trade-off is fair. The Lions are MUCH more overdue.