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SALT LAKE CITY — The Detroit Pistons have lost 24 straight games.
That long streak of ineptitude is just two losses short of the single-season record of 26 straight games, shared by the 2010-11 Cleveland Cavaliers and the 2013-14 Philadelphia 76ers.
Next up for the Pistons, the Utah Jazz on Thursday at Little Caesars Arena.
Will that be the long-awaited victory? Well, there are reasons why Jazz fans are a bit worried.
Ahead of the season, this game would have been seen as a scheduled loss for the Jazz. Utah will be on the second night of a back-to-back and will be playing their third game in four nights — all in different cities. The Pistons, meanwhile, have been resting since a loss Monday night.
That gives Detroit a big rest advantage, especially against a Jazz team that has been awful on the road. Utah also has the third-worst road record in the league at 2-12, and a league-worst -16.3 net rating in away games.
"Well, we've sucked on the road," Jazz coach Will Hardy said with a small laugh about his team's road-home splits. "That would be one big difference."
Hardy said travel does make it more difficult, and Utah's famed home crowd provides a jolt of energy to the team; Lauri Markkanen missing a few weeks didn't help matters, either.
"I think that road games are really where primary players reveal themselves," Hardy said. "I believe that the best players in the league are paid for the fourth quarter and road games."
Markkanen had 8 points and five rebounds in the fourth quarter Wednesday against Cleveland. Those are fine stats, but the Cavs, who were missing their top three players, won the quarter by 9 points to get the win.
The Jazz will be without Markkanen, who is still working his way back to full strength from a hamstring injury, in Detroit. Talen Horton-Tucker (left foot soreness), Jordan Clarkson (right hamstring strain), Keyonte George (left foot inflammation) and Omer Yurtseven (illness) will also miss Thursday's game.
The Pistons, meanwhile, should be mostly healthy. Former Jazz forward Bojan Bogdanovic is averaging 21 points per game after missing the first 19 games of the season, and guard Killian Hayes and big man Isaiah Stewart are both probable after missing Monday's contest.
So what will it take to avoid giving the Pistons their first win since Oct. 28?
"We've got to start fast," Collin Sexton said. "The first five minutes have to be strong."
Before being ruled out for the contest, Horton-Tucker echoed Sexton's sentiment and said the Jazz needed to play with a "chip on their shoulder" that matches Detroit's.
Markkanen said the Jazz need to focus on themselves and execute and a win should follow. Something that is even more important with the Jazz down so many players.
"I think just looking at our own stuff and really executing our game plan, and that will get us the win. We know that we can play against great teams in this league," Markkanen said.
Fans are just hoping they can beat one of the worst ones.
