After a miserable 14-68 season marked by an NBA-record 28-game losing streak, the Pistons won’t even get the first pick in June’s draft.
They fell four spots to No. 5 overall for the second year in a row in the NBA Draft lottery, watching the Hawks land the top pick — with the Wizards, Rockets and Spurs taking up the next three spots.
Detroit wasn’t even among the seven teams that had a chance before the final number was announced, according to The Athletic.
This will, however, be the fourth straight year that the Pistons have been selected as a top-five pick.
In 2021, they owned the No. 1 overall pick and selected Cade Cunningham, who averaged 22.7 points per game last year and who, predictably, has become a part of their core .
The next two years, Detroit went with Jaden Ivey and Ausar Thompson at No. 5, missing out on No. 1 pick Victor Wembanyama in the 2023 NBA Draft.
But those high picks didn’t translate into sustained success — and, as the 2023-2024 campaign began, a historic losing streak materialized instead.
The Pistons started 2–1 but lost their next 28 games until a two-point victory on December 30 against the Raptors.
“I’m so happy we were able to get this,” center Jalen Duren told reporters after the victory, according to the Associated Press. “We fought hard for a few months to get one, and we went through a lot of adversity.”
The Pistons finished last in the Eastern Conference in the first season with Monty Williams as head coach, one game behind the Wizards.
Atlanta entered the draft lottery with just a three percent chance of landing the top pick, and even earned a spot in the play-in tournament as a No. 10 seed – falling to the top-seeded Bulls series n°9, during the opening match.
But they will have the chance to add to a list that already includes – for now – Trae Young and Dejonte Murray, with ESPN and Yahoo! Sports projects in mock drafts that the Hawks will select 7-foot-1 center Alex Starr from Australia.
The Pistons, however, will once again have to wait for the dominoes to fall before scoring.
New York Post
