Suppose again, Pistons followers. Do you keep in mind an easier time, one stuffed with a bit extra pleasure and a bit much less James Wiseman? Effectively, that point was almost 4 months in the past. On Nov. 11, 2023, the Detroit Pistons awakened with out having the worst document within the NBA. At 2-8, their season was hardly off to a rousing begin, however not less than they may take a look at the standings and level to the 1-8 Memphis Grizzlies as being worse than they had been.
However on the twelfth, the Grizzlies gained their second recreation. On the thirteenth, the Pistons misplaced their ninth. And ever since then, the Pistons have both held or been tied for the NBA’s worst document… till Thursday. On Tuesday, the Pistons gained their ninth recreation of the 12 months and moved to 9-49 total. That put them in a tie with their fellow Jap Convention doormat, the Washington Wizards.
The Wizards had been the following of the 2 to take the ground. On Thursday, they performed an extra time thriller in opposition to the Los Angeles Lakers, however, in the end, fell quick in a 134-131 defeat. That pushed their document right down to 9-50, giving them sole possession of the title of “NBA’s worst crew.”
Within the course of, they knocked the Pistons out of that backside slot. In tangible basketball phrases, this implies little or no. The NBA’s revamped lottery odds give the three worst groups within the league the identical 14% odds on the No. 1 total choose in June. The one distinction is that the crew with the worst document can slip no decrease than No. 5, whereas the crew in second can slip no decrease than No. 6.
In fact, not all the things must have sensible worth to be significant. The Pistons, at one level, misplaced a single-season document 28 consecutive video games. They bought to Christmas having gained solely twice to that time within the season. We won’t precisely say that the Pistons have “turned issues round” once they’re 9-49, however the concept that somebody on the market is perhaps worse than the crew that misplaced 28 video games in a row is not less than the faintest potential signal of progress. No one needs to be the worst crew in NBA historical past.
This is the place issues get even spicier: The Wizards have misplaced 13 video games in a row. To illustrate they had been to lose 14 extra. Their opponent in recreation No. 28, which might probably tie them with the Pistons for the longest single-season shedding streak in NBA historical past… could be the Pistons on March 29. The basketball gods are pushing these two groups in direction of one of many lamer rivalries the game has ever seen.
Proper now, each the Pistons and Wizards are on tempo to complete 13-69. That might tie for the eighth worst document in NBA historical past. No single season has ever produced a number of groups with such a low successful proportion till now.
Buckle up, people. You have by no means seen a race for twenty ninth fairly like this one.
