Despite Cade Cunningham‘s 43-point performance, the Detroit Pistons‘ dismal win streak extended to 24 games with a 130-124 loss to the Atlanta Hawks. This means that the team has failed to win a single game since the third contest of the season. Former Golden State Warriors and Los Angeles Lakers star DeMarcus Cousins and analyst Rachel Nichols discussed the Pistons’ losing streak on the Bully Ball podcast on SHOWTIME Basketball. Cousins was speechless when Nichols asked how the Pistons had lost 23 (now 24) games in a row. The four-time NBA All-Star noted that the Pistons have a young roster, and trusted head coach Monty Williams to help them navigate out of the situation.
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While Cousins was sympathetic, Nichols continued to express her disbelief at the Pistons’ failure to win one game during this stretch. She also pointed out that Warriors star Draymond Green has more ejections (3) than the Pistons have won this season (2).
The duo then discussed Pistons sponsor Wingstop also joining in on poking fun at the team. Nichols said:
“Usually, [Wingstop] give out five free wings if the Pistons win. Right? That has been their promotion. All the arenas [in the NBA] have one of these promotions. Like two free throws, etc. The Pistons had the Wingstop promo, we’ll give out five wings to you if the Pistons win. And instead, Wingstop tweeted, ‘We could do 5 free wings for every L(oss), because you guys deserve a W(in).”
An exasperated Cousins could only say, “Jesus Christ.” Admittedly given the savage nature of this betrayal by the Pistons’ own sponsor, it is hard to blame the former NBA man.
Longest losing streak in NBA history: Pistons close in on unwanted record
Nichols then challenged the Pistons to win one of the three games they are scheduled to play before the next episode of the podcast drops on Christmas Day. Detroit lost the first against the Hawks. They will play the Utah Jazz on Thursday before taking on the Brooklyn Nets on Saturday.
The Pistons’ 24-game losing streak is already tied for the fourth-longest in NBA history alongside the Cleveland Cavaliers, who achieved the record with a 19-game losing streak to close out their 1981-82 NBA season and dropping their first five games in their 1982-83 campaign. A loss to the Jazz on Wednesday will see them break the tie. A defeat against the Nets on Saturday will see them join the 2010-11 Cleveland Cavaliers and the 2013-14 Philadelphia 76ers as owners of the second-longest losing streak in NBA history with 26 on the trot.
A loss against the Nets on December 26th, potentially the Pistons’ 27th on the trot, will break the record for the longest losing streak in a single season. They would still need one more loss to tie the 76ers’ record of the longest losing streak in NBA history, which they achieved over two seasons (2014-15 and 2015-16).
The Pistons are inching closer to creating an unwanted legacy. All it will take is one good collective performance from the team to prevent it.
