Detroit Pistons finally get a win, end losing streak tied with Philadelphia 76ers for most in NBA history at 28 straight games

If you would have told me that I would be watching the Detroit Pistons and Toronto Raptors play basketball in late-December like it’s Game 7 of the NBA Finals, I would have laughed in your face.

The Detroit Pistons hadn’t won a basketball game since October 28th. With their 129-127 win against the Toronto Raptors on Friday night, they matched the “Process Era” Philadelphia 76ers’ 28th consecutive loss, tying the longest losing streak in NBA, NFL, NHL, and MLB history. 

Note: Across all major sports in North America, only the NFL Chicago Cardinals who lost 29 straight in 1942-1945 have a longer losing streak. 

Earlier in the week, the Pistons surpassed the 2010-11 Cleveland Cavaliers and 2013-14 Philadelphia 76ers for the longest single-season losing streak in the history of the NBA at 27 games.

Detroit Pistons tie Philadelphia 76ers for longest losing streak in NBA History

• 28 Consecutive Losses (March 27, 2015 – December 1, 2015): Philadelphia 76ers
• 28 Consecutive Losses (October 30, 2023 – Present): Detroit Pistons
• 26 Consecutive Losses (December 20, 2010 – February 11, 2011): Cleveland Cavaliers
• 26 Consecutive Losses (January 31, 2014 – March 29, 2014): Philadelphia 76ers
• 24 Consecutive Losses (March 19, 1982 – November 10, 1982): Cleveland Cavaliers

The Process Era fell one game short of being completely erased from sports infamy as the Pistons avoided a disastrous 29-game losing streak.

Is that enough to overtake the dark cloud that’s cursed the 76ers over the past decade?

After the 76ers managed to break the Cavaliers record for the longest losing streak in NBA history, a cloud was lifted over the city of Cleveland.

In the same exact season, LeBron James and the Cavs defeated the Golden State Warriors 4-3 in the NBA Finals in 2016 to win their first NBA Title in franchise history, breaking the “Cleveland Sports Curse” and finally, restoring faith in sports fans that have a long history of being plagued by professional sports misery. 

It also marked the first time in NBA history that a team managed to comeback from a 3-1 deficit to win the NBA Finals.

Point being, if the Philadelphia 76ers wanted to lift the basketball curse that has plagued this franchise since the 1980’s, they desperately needed the Detroit Pistons to rid them of the longest losing streak in NBA history.

The Detroit Pistons tying the 76ers didn’t exactly re-write the NBA history books but at the very least, Philadelphia no longer stands alone atop of the list. On top of that, the Pistons losing 28-straight games while not even undergoing a process-type rebuild is arguably worse.

Years of “The Process” followed by playoff disappointment and freak-injuries to star players, the 76ers almost escaped eternal hell. We’ll see if it’s enough to finally bring an NBA Finals trophy back to the city of Philadelphia for the first time since 1983.

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