The 2023-24 Pistons are closing in on NBA infamy with every consecutive loss, but who holds the record for the longest losing streak in league history?
NBA fans don't have to rack their brains to remember "The Process" 76ers.
From 2013 to 2016, Philadelphia intentionally had one of the worst spans by a franchise in NBA history. Engineered by new general manager Sam Hinkie and coached by Brett Brown, the 76ers took "tanking" to another level.
In an attempt to get the best draft picks possible and bring some talented young players into the organization, the 76ers rolled out some of the worst lineups we've seen in the last two decades of NBA basketball. This was before the NBA's new lottery odds system (which was, in part, developed because of "The Process" 76ers), so finishing with the worst record in the league almost guaranteed you a top-three pick.
As a result, Philadelphia went 47-199 over a three-year span — a number of wins that, in a single season, would typically land a team a decent playoff seed. Over that stretch, "The Process" 76ers became responsible for both the worst single-season losing streak (26 games) and longest losing streak (28 games) in NBA history.
With the Pistons only one loss away from breaking the infamous record, let's take a look back at the Philadelphia teams that ended up on the wrong side of the record books.
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The longest single-season losing streak in NBA history
The 2013-14 76ers weren't nearly as bad as the teams in the two years that followed, but they still managed to lose 26 games in a row to tie the post-LeBron James Cavaliers (2010-11) for the worst single-season losing streak in NBA history.
There were a total of 23 players who suited up for the 76ers that season, but there were 10 players who appeared in at least 50 games, headlined by Thaddeus Young, Evan Turner and Michael Carter-Williams.
| Player | GP | GS | PPG |
| Thaddeus Young | 79 | 78 | 17.9 |
| Evan Turner | 54 | 54 | 17.4 |
| Michael Carter-Williams | 70 | 70 | 16.7 |
| Tony Wroten | 72 | 16 | 13.0 |
| Spencer Hawes | 53 | 53 | 13.0 |
| James Anderson | 80 | 62 | 10.1 |
| Hollis Thompson | 77 | 41 | 6.0 |
| Elliot Williams | 67 | 2 | 6.0 |
| Lavoy Allen | 51 | 2 | 5.2 |
From Jan. 31, 2014, to March 29, 2014, the 76ers went 57 days without a win.
They finally snapped their losing streak to the Pistons in Philadelphia, blowing out Detroit by 25 points. Young and Carter-Williams each went for 21 points, while Greg Monroe led the Pistons with 20 points and 10 rebounds.
The 76ers finished the season 19-63 and went on to take Joel Embiid with the No. 3 pick in the 2014 NBA Draft.
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The start of the longest losing streak in NBA history
"The Process" really began when Embiid missed his entire rookie season due to a foot injury.
Philadelphia went 0-17 to start 2014-15, then ended the season with 10 consecutive losses. That turned out to be the start of the longest total losing streak in NBA history.
There were a total of 25 players who suited up for the 76ers that season, but there were 10 players who appeared in at least 40 games, headlined by Carter-Williams, Robert Covington and Nerlens Noel.
| Player | GP | GS | PPG |
| Michael Carter-Williams | 41 | 38 | 15.0 |
| Robert Covington | 70 | 49 | 13.5 |
| Nerlens Noel | 75 | 71 | 9.9 |
| Luc Mbah a Moute | 67 | 61 | 9.9 |
| K.J. McDaniels | 52 | 15 | 9.2 |
| Hollis Thompson | 71 | 23 | 8.8 |
| Henry Sims | 73 | 32 | 8.0 |
| Jerami Grant | 65 | 11 | 6.3 |
| JaKarr Sampson | 74 | 32 | 5.2 |
| Furkan Aldemir | 41 | 9 | 2.3 |
Wroten, Ish Smith, Isaiah Canaan, Thomas Robinson and Brandon Davies were a few other players who logged significant minutes in at least 20 games for Philadelphia in 2014-15.
The 76ers finished 18-64 and elected to take another center, Jahlil Okafor, with the No. 3 pick in the 2015 NBA Draft.
The peak of "The Process" and the longest losing streak in NBA history
The 76ers still weren't ready to deploy Embiid in 2015-16 due to his foot injury, causing the top-three pick to miss his entire first two seasons in the NBA.
Ensuingly, Philadelphia picked up right where it left off, losing its first 18 games of the season to mark the longest total losing streak in NBA history at 28 games.
There were a total of 18 players who suited up for the 76ers that season, but there were 13 players who appeared in at least 30 games, headlined by Okafor, Smith and Covington.
| Player | GP | GS | PPG |
| Jahlil Okafor | 53 | 48 | 17.5 |
| Ish Smith | 50 | 50 | 14.7 |
| Robert Covington | 67 | 49 | 12.8 |
| Nerlens Noel | 67 | 62 | 11.1 |
| Isaiah Canaan | 77 | 39 | 11.0 |
| Hollis Thompson | 77 | 17 | 9.8 |
| Carl Landry | 36 | 12 | 9.8 |
| Jerami Grant | 77 | 52 | 9.7 |
| Nik Stauskas | 73 | 35 | 8.5 |
| T.J. McConnell | 81 | 17 | 6.1 |
| Richaun Holmes | 51 | 1 | 5.6 |
| JaKarr Sampson | 47 | 18 | 5.1 |
| Kendall Marshall | 30 | 6 | 3.7 |
From March 27, 2015, to Nov. 29, 2015, the 76ers went 247 days without a win.
They finally snapped their losing streak to the 2-15 Lakers in Philadelphia. Covington led the way with 23 points, but five players — Grant, Noel, Okafor, Canaan and Thompson — joined him in double figures scoring. Kobe Bryant put up 20 points for Los Angeles, but it wasn't enough to tack on another loss for Philly.
After the win, the 76ers went on to lose their next 12 games, starting the season a putrid 1-30. They finished the year with a 10-72 record, one of the worst in NBA history.
The reward: Philadelphia went on to take Ben Simmons with the No. 1 pick in the 2016 NBA Draft.