Other than the fact that they both play in the Motor City, the Detroit Lions and Detroit Pistons had little in common during their 2023-24 seasons.
While the Lions exceeded everyone’s expectations and made it to the NFC Championship Game in January, the Pistons finished with the worst record in the NBA.
The Pistons were so bad during the 2023-24 campaign that they ended the season with both their worst winning percentage (.171) and fewest victories (14) in franchise history. That’s where the surprising similarity with the Lions comes in.
While the Lions ended the regular season with “only” 12 wins, their playoff victories against the Los Angeles Rams and Tampa Bay Buccaneers gave them 14 for the season.
If not for their second-half collapse against the 49ers in the NFC title game, the Lions would’ve ended with 15 wins — or 16 if they beat the Kansas City Chiefs in Super Bowl LVIII.
The Lions not only made their first postseason appearance in seven years over the winter and won their first playoff game since the 1991 campaign, but also tied their franchise record for regular season wins with 12.
Detroit previously won a dozen contests in a season in 1991, when it made it to the NFC Championship Game.
The Pistons were historically bad nearly right from the start in the fall. They won two of their first three games, but then lost 28 games in a row from Oct. 30 through Dec. 30.
The Pistons only won back-to-back games three times during the campaign and failed to earn a three-game winning streak all season long.
It was reported on Monday that the organization is looking for a new team president.