Detroit Pistons Losing Streak: What’s Gone Wong?

The historic futility of the Detroit Pistons is something that not many could have predicted heading into the season. It seemed like they were ready to take a step forward in the Eastern Conference, but what has ensued has been nothing short of a disaster in the Motor City. We’ll take a closer look at why the Pistons have struggled so mightily.

Some raised an eyebrow when the Pistons decided to bring in the likes of James Wiseman and Marvin Bagley in recent years, when they already had Jalen Duren and Isaiah Stewart. All of these players profile as centers who will do their damage around the rim, so it doesn’t make much sense having all four on the same roster.

Detroit is a young team, so the hope was that they would grow together in 2023. What didn’t help matters was the prolonged absence of Bojan Bogdanovic to begin the year, who could have served as a stabilizing presence on the floor and in the locker room. Bogdanovic has re-entered the lineup, but it seems like the team isn’t quite sure how to integrate him.

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Coming out of Purdue, Jaden Ivey was viewed as a prospect who had the potential to become a star in the NBA. That luster has since faded, and the Pistons don’t seem to know how to get the best out of him. They appear to prefer deploying him off the bench, but that decision hasn’t resulted in many victories.

Detroit was all-in on Monty Williams as the next coach of the franchise this offseason, and their enthusiasm made a lot of sense. He did a great job building up the Phoenix Suns in recent years, and appeared to be a strong foundational choice for the Pistons. For whatever reason, Williams has not pushed the right buttons this season, and it has set the franchise back significantly.

A 10 game losing streak can take its toll on a team, but 20 consecutive losses puts a group of players in rarified air. Detroit is now synonymous with bad basketball, and have become a punchline. It’s hard to overcome the mental hurdle that prevents players from believing that they can win after so many defeats.

Returns on Ausar Thompson’s first few weeks in the NBA were exceedingly positive, as experts believed he was the type of player who fit into a winning culture. There’s only one problem with that, as teams as moribund as the Pistons don’t have role players. As a result, it’s made Thompson’s contributions hard to quantify.

Even though the Pistons have had high draft picks in recent years, they were hoping for better fortunes last season. Bringing in the likes of a Victor Wembanyama would have changed their fortunes immensely, as he is the versatile big that the Pistons are currently lacking. It’s hard to see their fortunes changing that much without some roster diversification.

As is to be expected with a losing streak of this length, Detroit’s ability to keep games close has been compromised. They lost a close content to the defending champion Denver Nuggets in November, but a lot of their games have turned into blowouts. This is unfortunate, considering that their younger talent is not getting the experience of playing together in crucial situations.