Pistons’ Historic Losing Streak & Wembanyama’s Struggles | NBA Update

Does Victor Wembanyama regret the outcome of the lottery which led to his draft by the Spurs in 2023? That year, the Detroit Pistons had completed a nightmare season with the worst record in the NBA and the best chances of pocketing the French jackpot. The Michigan franchise left with the 5th pick and taunts. Two and a half years later, no one is making fun of Detroit anymore. And if the Wemby Spurs are in good shape, the Pistons, first in the East, are doing even better.

Two years ago, to the day, the franchise with three NBA titles (1989, 1990 and 2004) suffered a 26th defeat, a series which would climb to 28 (record in NBA history) and which had brought a few tears to Cade Cunningham. The number one pick in the 2021 draft was in a desperate situation in an organization where nothing was working. That season, Detroit would finish with a record of 17 wins for 65 losses but if the men of Michigan thought they had hit rock bottom, they were wrong since they would only win 14 games in 2023-2024.

While we have only just crossed the threshold of a third of the season, Detroit has already done better in 2025/2026 with 23 victories for 7 defeats. It will not take long for Cunningham – candidate for the Top 5 in the MVP vote of the season – and his team to exceed, in one exercise, their total of victories between 2022 and 2024 (31 victories). If things are going very quickly in the NBA, the rebirth of the Pistons has taken everyone by surprise since they are today the best team in the Eastern Conference and they have the second best record behind the untouchable Thunder.

They dreamed of Wembanyama

Yet Detroit had to deal with incredible bad luck. If they obtained the first draft pick in 2021, their five seasons in a row with 23 victories or less did not allow them to build a squad full of talent, unlike San Antonio for example:

2019-2020: 5th worst record in the NBA and 7th draft pick
2020-2021: 2nd worst record in the NBA and 1st draft pick
2021-2022: 3rd worst record in the NBA and 5th draft pick
2022-2023: Worst NBA record and 5th draft pick
2023-2024: Worst NBA record and 5th draft pick

The Pistons dreamed of Victor Wembanyama, they had to settle for Ausar Thompson, the less good of the two brothers, a useful player but light years away from the generational talent that is the Frenchman. At the end of the 2022-2023 season, Detroit hired coach Monty Williams to turn things around. With the record that we know, the worst in the history of the franchise and a new subject of mockery because Williams, fired after one season, had nevertheless signed for 6 years and 78.5 million dollars, i.e…. the most lucrative contract for a coach in the entire history of the NBA.

It was these Pistons who began to turn things around last season, going to the Playoffs for the first time in six years, only the third time in a decade and a half. Detroit had already done a lot to regain the respect of its fans and the league behind an excellent Cunningham and 7th in the MVP ranking. But who could believe that this team could go from 53.7% to 78.6% wins in a few months… and without much change?

A series reminiscent of Bad Boys

Last summer, while some rumors imagined them active, the Pistons only added a bit of experience with Duncan Robinson, Caris LeVert and Javonte Green. Cunningham, but also Jalen Duren or Tobias Harris… The base of the team has not fundamentally changed. “We have reached a point of maturity. This summer we made a conscious decision to give our young players the opportunity to continue to progress” declared coach JB Bickerstaff recently.

The Cunningham – Duren duo, who took the team to the heights we know, were already there during the series of 28 defeats and they have not forgotten anything. “Not everyone here experienced it with us, but those who were there really understand and still feel like we have a lot to prove“, affirmed the pivot recently.

From the worst, these Pistons went to the best, or almost, equaling the most victorious series in the rich history of Detroit, 13 like the Bad Boys of 1990 and their heirs of 2005. Both of these generations won the title. In Detroit, no one believes they’re already there, but at the rate they’re going and with the right addition, why not believe in a happy ending?