We’re back! The Detroit Pistons have lost 10 in a row, are the worst team in the NBA and the fanbase finds itself in an all-too-familiar position:
The Abyss.
We’re already (it’s still November) at the point in the season when even the most optimistic fans like myself start to question whether they will ever see the Pistons win another game.
10 losses in a row.
— Jack Kelly (@jack_kelly_313) November 18, 2023
Worst record in the NBA.
Lead defensive assistant coach has seemingly vanished without a trace.
Injuries to key vets and young center
Top-5 pick playing 20 mins as a sophomore.
Without Ausar Thompson, I'm not sure where I'd be.
Rant over.
Look what the Pistons have done to our poor Australian friend.
It was more of the same last night, egregious turnovers, a huge foul and free-throw disparity and a game Detroit never had a realistic chance of winning. If turnovers and fouls were positives, the Pistons would be one of the top teams in the NBA, as they lead the league in both by a mile.
The offense was stagnant and sloppy in the halfcourt, where everything looked difficult and led to 15 combined turnovers from Cade Cunningham, Ausar Thompson and Jaden Ivey.
Thompson had some nice moments in transition but also threw the ball away on back-to-back lob attempts and committed some silly fouls that got him benched for most of the second half.
The Pistons were once again missing five players, but the Cavaliers were missing four, including Donovan Mitchell, who is averaging nearly 30 points per game.
We’ve talked a lot about the Pistons’ injuries this season, and there is no doubt they have played a role in this horrific start, but we rarely mention how often other teams sit their top players against the Pistons and still get a win.
New Orleans, Phoenix and Milwaukee were all missing star players and it didn’t matter. Most recently, Atlanta and Cleveland both sat their top scorers against the Pistons and got wins anyway. As it’s been for the last three seasons, Detroit is a rest night on the schedule for some of the top players, as their teams know they can win without them.
The Pistons were the first team eliminated from the in-season tournament (boy, that was fun!) and already have to ask some tough questions even though we are only 12 games into the season.