Detroit Pistons on Historic Slide After Phenomenal Start to 2017-18

The Detroit Pistons lost Tuesday's matchup against the Denver Nuggets 103-84 to drop the team's record to just 14-13.

Tuesday's defeat marked the Pistons' seventh straight, making them just the second team in NBA history to start a season 14-6 or better and have a losing streak of seven or more games later in the campaign, per the Elias Sports Bureau (via ESPN.com). The Utah Jazz started 15-5 during 2010-11 but lost eight straight contests late in the season to fall out of playoff contention.

Detroit wasn't expected to be among the better teams in the Eastern Conference this season, owning a projected 38.5 over/under win total entering the season, per OddsShark. Early on, it appeared the Pistons would easily bypass that total, but that appears increasingly more accurate given the recent stretch.

While the Pistons have certainly hit a rough patch, the team's competition over that span can't be discounted. All of Detroit's seven losses came at the hands of teams sporting records over the .500 mark, with four of the losses came by five points or fewer.

The Pistons will attempt to end the woeful streak Thursday evening and are favored to do so against a 6-21 Atlanta Hawks club, per ESPN's Basketball Power Index.