The NBA record for most consecutive losses could be broken this year. For the past several weeks, Detroit and San Antonio hadn’t secured a win in over a month. Mercifully, the Spurs earned a marquee victory over LeBron James and the Lakers last Friday to put an end to their franchise-record 18-game losing streak. The Pistons, however, keep tumbling down — it’s now 24 consecutive losses after dropping Monday evening’s contest to the Hawks, despite Cade Cunningham scoring a career-high 43 points. As it stands, they are dangerously close to matching the league’s futility mark of 28 straight regular-season defeats, a string owned by the 76ers over the 2014-15 and 2015-16 campaigns.
The 76ers also own the record for most consecutive losses in one season with 26 in 2013-14, matching only the 2010-11 Cavaliers.
This season, the Pistons have the league’s worst record at 2-25 and are currently on the aforementioned 24-game losing streak. While they’ve amassed a talented group of lottery picks in recent years, they’ve struggled to smooth out their offensive struggles.
Longest losing streaks in NBA history
Streak | Team | Streak Started | Streak Ended |
28 | Philadelphia 76ers^ | March 27, 2015 | Dec. 1, 2015 |
26 | Cleveland Cavaliers | Dec. 20, 2010 | Feb. 11, 2011 |
26 | Philadelphia 76ers | Jan. 31, 2014 | March 29, 2014 |
24 | Cleveland Cavaliers^ | March 19, 1982 | Nov. 10, 1982 |
24 | Detroit Pistons | Oct. 30, 2023 | ? |
23 | Vancouver Grizzlies | Feb. 16, 1996 | April 3, 1996 |
23 | Denver Nuggets | Dec. 9, 1997 | Jan. 24, 1998 |
23 | Charlotte Bobcats | March 19, 2012 | Nov. 2, 2012 |
21 | Detroit Pistons^ | March 7, 1980 | Oct. 25, 1980 |
20 | Philadelphia 76ers | Jan. 9, 1973 | Feb. 14, 1973 |
20 | March 23, 1985 | Nov. 12, 1985 | |
20 | Nov. 13, 1993 | Dec. 23, 1993 | |
20 | April 18, 1994 | Dec. 7, 1994 | |
20 | Feb. 6, 2021 | March 22, 2021 | |
19 | Philadelphia 76ers^ | March 21, 1972 | Nov. 11, 1972 |
19 | San Diego Clippers | March 11, 1982 | April 15, 1982 |
19 | Los Angeles Clippers | Dec. 30, 1988 | Feb. 8, 1989 |
19 | Dallas Mavericks | Feb. 6, 1993 | March 17, 1993 |
19 | Vancouver Grizzlies | Nov. 7, 1995 | Dec. 15, 1995 |
19 | Oct. 30, 2003 | Dec. 8, 2003 | |
19 | New Jersey Nets^ | April 15, 2009 | Dec. 4, 2009 |
19 | Memphis Grizzlies | Jan. 31, 2018 | March 17, 2018 |
18 | Feb. 24, 1982 | April 2, 1982 | |
18 | Jan. 7, 2007 | Feb. 14, 2007 | |
18 | March 13, 2011 | Jan. 1, 2012 | |
18 | Charlotte Bobcats | Nov. 26, 2012 | Dec. 31, 2012 |
18 | New York Knicks | Jan. 4, 2019 | Feb. 16, 2019 |
18 | San Antonio Spurs* | Nov. 5, 2023 | Dec. 15, 2023 |
(^ Denotes streaks that spanned over two seasons)
(* Denotes streak that happened during 2023-24 season)
(Active streak)
When could the record be broken?
Let’s face it, when you’re 2-25, every opponent might seem like the 2015-16 Warriors, but that aside, the Pistons best chance to end the slide might come this week. Despite losing on Monday, they’ll have two days off before hosting the 9-17 Jazz, who’ll be on the second night of a back-to-back after coming in from Cleveland. But if the Pistons can’t stop the bleeding then, they’re likely in trouble as their next three games are against the 13-13 Nets and the 20-5 Celtics. Lose those five straight and it’ll be Pistons hosting the Raptors on Dec. 30 for sole possession of a record that no club wants to own.
Pistons’ upcoming schedule
- Thursday, Dec. 21 vs. Jazz
- Saturday, Dec. 23 @ Nets
- Tuesday, Dec. 26 vs. Nets
- Thursday, Dec 28 @ Celtics
- Saturday, Dec. 30 vs. Raptors
