The Detroit Pistons were making all sorts of ignominious history to end the 2023 calendar year. It seemed like with every loss, the walls caved in on an organization that was floundering. The Pistons set the record for the most consecutive losses in a single-season and they also tied the record for most consecutive defeats spanning two seasons. However, they were finally able to stop the bleeding on December 30, with Detroit getting its first win in nearly two months with a 129-127 win over the Toronto Raptors.

Now, the next challenge that stood in front of them was a matchup against the Houston Rockets. But that matchup proceeded to become a disaster for the Pistons. They ended up losing in blowout fashion to the Rockets, 136-113, making it feel as if all the progress they've been making over the past two months was scrapped in its entirety. Now, head coach Monty Williams is back to calling out his players for their lackluster performance on the hardwood.

“Just an unbelievably bad third quarter, defensively. You give up 47 points in an NBA quarter, you can’t expect to win any game. Period. To come out and not have the defensive fire that is requisite to keep winning games, that was disappointing tonight,” Williams said in his postgame presser, per Omari Sankofa II of the Detroit Free Press.

Their win over the Raptors was supposed to be a catalyst for a turnaround for head coach Monty Williams and his men; after all, the Pistons were starting to play at a much better level even before they finally broke the historic losing streak for good. They pushed the best team in the NBA, the Boston Celtics, to the brink, and were competitive in some games even before that close call in TD Garden.

Now, the Pistons are back to being non-competitive, and it all boils down to effort, communication, and togetherness on the defensive end. Those were good habits that they were starting to build during the tail-end of their losing streak. But now, they might have to go back to the drawing board and figure out how to achieve some semblance of consistency on that end of the floor.