Nobody wanted to be that team, but somebody had to.
It turned out to be the Toronto Raptors, who fell to the Detroit Pistons 129-127 on Saturday that saw the latter end a record 28-game single-season losing streak.
The Pistons were one loss away from breaking the combined season record of 29 straight losses, but Cade Cunningham's heroics yet again led the way to prevent that from happening.
Cunningham anchored Detroit with 30 points, 12 assists and three rebounds on 9-for-20 shooting overall, 2-for-4 from deep and 10-for-10 from the foul line. Bojan Bogdanovic added 19 points, Jalen Duren 18, Kevin Knox II 17 and Jaden Ivey 12 to round out the starters. Alec Burks chipped in 16 points off the bench.
Pascal Siakam delivered a valiant effort for Toronto but fell short, recording 35 points, five rebounds and four assists on 14-for-24 shooting overall, 2-for-2 from deep and 5-for-8 from the charity stripe. Dennis Schroder added 30 points, Gary Trent Jr. 24 and Scottie Barnes 22.
The loss for Toronto came the same day it dealt star OG Anunoby, along with Precious Achiuwa and Malachi Flynn, to the New York Knicks in exchange for Immanuel Quickley, RJ Barrett and a 2024 second-round pick (via Detroit).
NBA
Detroit last won on Oct. 28, when they beat the Chicago Bulls 118-102 to move to 2-1 on the year.
Can the Pistons, who are 3-29, now go on a winning run? After the home win, they'll embark on a four-game road trip that features the Houston Rockets, Utah Jazz, Golden State Warriors and Denver Nuggets.
Feeling out of the loop? We'll catch you up on the Chicago news you need to know. Sign up for the weekly> Chicago Catch-Up newsletter.
Never say never, but the Pistons, under new head coach Monty Williams, just have to be relieved to end 2023 with a victory.
