Welcome back, the 2023-2024 Detroit Pistons. While the Washington Wizards haven't yet reached Pistons territory of losing 27 straight games, they're more than halfway there, after Thursday's loss to the Dallas Mavericks. In the loss, after all, the Wizards have lost 16 straight games, one game short from making franchise history, though nobody on the team probably wants to hold that record. However, another difference between the Wizards and Pistons is that Detroit had good to great players like Cade Cunningham, Jaden Ivey, Jalen Duren, and Ausar Thompson.

Meanwhile, the Wiz only have a rag-tag team of veterans and young players aimlessly put together by a front office who also seems confused about what it really wants the team to be. They traded for Jonas Valanciunas and Malcolm Brogdon to support Jordan Poole and Kyle Kuzma, and they also selected Alex Sarr No. 2 overall in the latest draft, but these pieces haven't added up to a coherent team.

Wizards make dubious franchise history

New York Knicks forward OG Anunoby (8) drives to the basket against Washington Wizards guard Jordan Poole (13) and forward Kyle Kuzma (33) during the third quarter at Madison Square Garden. The Wizards have tied their longest losing streak in franchise history with 16.
© Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Thursday's loss to the Mavericks tied the Wizards' longest losing streak in franchise history, and everybody is scrambling for answers.

One of them is once again, blowing the team up, as rumors have indicated the Wizards have begun shopping Valanciunas and Kuzma around the league for prospective partners.

Moreover, one of these possible partners is the Los Angeles Lakers, reportedly interested in another big man to pair with Anthony Davis. The problem with that deal is AD needs a partner on defense to help carry the load for the bottom-tier Lakers defense, and Valanciunas is not that guy.

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Also, the Wiz acquired him to be a mentor figure to Sarr and to help him adjust to the NBA, so dealing him defeats the purpose of getting him. It also begs the question: What does this team really want to be?

Perhaps the Lakers would want to reunite with Kuzma instead, a tall forward who can play two-way basketball, with the added bonus that he knows how to play championship basketball behind LeBron and AD.

Still, the problem is that Kuzma may want an additional role besides plugging in the margins around two superstars, which he has enjoyed in Washington for the past three seasons.

But of course while he and Jordan Poole are top-tier role players, they are nowhere near the level of other stars, even those on fellow bad teams. In this case, the prudent thing is to trade both players for an actual primary option, but they seem serious in making Poole their top guy, as if they were also seriously trying to win instead of tanking for Cooper Flagg.

There's no getting around the fact this team is simply bad, but the puzzling thing is that they seem bad for no reason.