Former Phoenix Suns coach Monty Williams and the Detroit Pistons lost a single-season record 27th consecutive game tonight with a 118-112 defeat to the Brooklyn Nets.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!NBA history and infamy: The Detroit Pistons have set the league record for most consecutive losses in a season at 27 in a row (and counting). pic.twitter.com/FBT4RstGCQ
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) December 27, 2023
The Suns parted ways with Williams as their head coach on May 14, just a day after they fell to the Denver Nuggets in the second round of the playoffs. Williams then suggested he would take a year off of coaching but did not end up doing so, as the Pistons signed him to a groundbreaking six-year, $78.5 million contract later that month.
Williams had helped take the Suns to new heights in his tenure in Phoenix since he was hired in May of 2019. He finished with an overall record of 309-194 (.628) with Phoenix, was the 2022 Coach of the Year, led the team to the 2021 NBA Finals, went 8-0 in the bubble and much more.
When Phoenix hired Williams, he inherited a team that went 19-63 the year prior and set them up for future success right away with their bubble performance. The Suns improved to 34-39 in Williams’ first season in 2019. They then established themselves as one of the top teams in the league.
His success has not translated over at all to Detroit. Tonight all comes full circle for Suns’ fans as Mikal Bridges and Cam Johnson helped put their former coach on the wrong side of NBA history.
Coach Monty Williams speaks after the Pistons' 118-112 loss to the Nets. #DetroitBasketball pic.twitter.com/Ne3YUScqtO
— Bally Sports Detroit (@BallySportsDET) December 27, 2023
Can he somehow help turn around the Pistons as he did the Suns or will Detroit end up making a coaching change?
This remains to be seen, but the Pistons are now two games away from the longest combined losing streak in NBA history. The record is 28 games and was set by the Philadelphia 76ers across the 2014-15 and 2015-16 seasons.
Monty Williams’ nightmare start as HC for the Detroit Pistons
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Brendan Mau is a senior writer covering the Phoenix Suns and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @Brendan_Mau
