Pistons drop 16th straight game, post winless month in November
The Detroit Pistons are already reaching a level of futility worthy of the history books.
The team lost its 16th straight game Thursday, falling 118-112 on the road to the New York Knicks and assuring they will finish the month of November without a win. It also extended their franchise-record skid, which previously was 14 straight games in three different seasons (1979-80, 1993-94, 2021-22). Their last victory: 118-102 over the Chicago Bulls on Oct. 28 in the third game of the season.
It is the NBA's first winless month with more than 10 games played since the infamously tanking Philadelphia 76ers lost every game in November 2015 as part of a NBA-record 28-game losing skid that spanned parts of two seasons. The 2017-18 Memphis Grizzlies also went 0-10 in February 2015.
The Pistons have also lost 13 straight games against the Knicks, accounting for every game played in the 2020s, as Statmuse notes.
Detroit at least tried something different this game, swapping 2022 No. 5 overall pick Jaden Ivey and rookie Ausar Thompson (also a No. 5 pick) out of the starting lineup for Killian Hayes and Isaiah Livers. The change seemed to be a good one, with Hayes posting 21 points on 9-of-12 shooting in a closer loss than usual, but it's never great when your big adjustment is benching your last two lottery picks.
Considering the Pistons had lost their last five games by an average of 20.2 points, even a close game is good news. The Pistons even held a lead in the fourth quarter, until the Knicks reeled off a couple quick runs to put the game beyond reach in the final minutes.
Add that to the mixtape ⤵️ pic.twitter.com/H6RwPxIvpS
— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) December 1, 2023
Few expected the Pistons to be a true contender this season, but there was at least hope they would improve on last season's 17-65 campaign. With their record now at 2-17, the Pistons are on pace to win only 9.6 games this season.
The team didn't add any players of note beyond Thompson, but just a year of additional experience was supposed to bolster one of the NBA's youngest cores, composed of former top-10 picks Cade Cunningham, Hayes, Ivey and Thompson, plus big men Isaiah Stewart and Jalen Duren.
That hasn't really happened. Even though Thompson has been of the NBA's best rookies in a loaded 2023 class, the team as a whole has faltered from top to bottom. They entered Thursday ranked 27th in the league in offensive rating, 24th in defensive rating, 29th in turnover rate and 30th in personal fouls per game.
This is concerning stuff when you've spent the last three years accruing top picks with the clear plan of moving forward this year, right down to spending $78.5 million on head coach Monty Williams. Williams doesn't seem to be enjoying the experience either, slamming his players' effort level two losses ago.
