There may not be a more dire sports franchise right now than the Detroit Pistons.
A loss to the Brooklyn Nets the day after Christmas extended the Pistons' losing streak to 27 games, the longest in the history of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The previous record of 26 straight losses was jointly held by the 2010-11 Cleveland Cavaliers and 2013-14 Philadelphia 76ers.
As it stands, the Pistons are 2-28, winning just 6.7% of its games so far, on pace to smash the lowest win percentage in NBA history that belongs to the 2011-12 Charlotte Bobcats team that won just 10.6% of its games.
What makes the Pistons situation even more bleak is that the team has been horrendous for quite a while. It has finished with a bottom five record in the NBA in each of the last five seasons.
The positive side of a slew of bad season is that it tends to result in a top draft selection, and this season was gearing up to be a showcase of the potential of some of the Pistons' young studs.
The team signed Monty Williams to a then-record six-year, $78.5 million deal to be its head coach. Williams provided hope on the sidelines considering he was just two years removed from carrying a Phoenix Suns team out from the doldrums of the league to the NBA Finals.
But all the optimism has led to this point: The 2023-24 Detroit are one of the worst teams in the history of the NBA.
The historic losing has led fans to begin calling for ownership to sell the team.
The team is owned by Tom Gores, owner of private equity firm Platinum Equity. Gores and his firm purchased the team in 2011 for $325 million, and his investment has grown nearly 1000% in just over a decade as the team is now worth $3.08 billion according to Forbes.
But Gores' leadership has not produced success on the court. Since Gore took over in 2011, the team has only made the playoffs two times, squeezing in both times as the eighth seed in the Eastern Conference before easily being ousted in the first round.
The Pistons haven't won a playoff series since 2008.
In a video call after the team's 25th straight loss on Thursday, Gores addressed the media about the state of the team. Like many of the fans, he admitted that he had a positive outlook entering the season, but now knows that change needs to be made.
"I was very optimistic at the beginning of the season about what this team could do and felt that it had a bright future. I still feel that way. But, do we need to change some things? Absolutely," Gores said.
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He added that he thinks deserves the blame to "some level" for the situation, and that his general manager, Troy Weaver, does as well.
"If you want to shoulder it on anyone, it’s on me and Troy. We made these decisions. What you don’t see right now, what the fans don’t see, is the cleaning up of everything. We’re in the most flexible time during my ownership with the Pistons. In terms of how we’re not performing and so on, I think it has to go on Troy and I. It starts there," Gores said.
But when asked about the fans pleas to sell the team, Gores pushed back vehemently.
"They can say what they want, but that’s ridiculous," Gores said. "Other than winning — and we should win more games — we do a lot in the community. Players, the organization, we do a lot in the community. If you put aside winning, we’ve made a very big difference in the community. That means a lot to me ... I understand the fans being upset, but it’s a ridiculous thought."
Despite Gores' rejection, the fans still continued their plea during the team's record-breaking defeat on Tuesday.
Deafening “sell the team” chants 🤦🏾♂️ #Pistons pic.twitter.com/mmWvAeNKHQ
— Eric Vincent (@IAmEricVincent) December 27, 2023
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