Where do Washington Wizards rank in worst season record in NBA history?
The Washington Wizards prompted a question in the NBA this season: What are the worst seasons in NBA history?
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The Washington Wizards are really struggling
The Washington Wizards are the greatest disaster class in the NBA right now. More than halfway through the season, and the Wizards are yet to crack double-digit wins. Even after landing the second pick in this year’s NBA Draft, the Wizards’ woes from the last few seasons have continued to plague them. This comes with even worse results than ever before.
As of 31 January 2025, the Wizards are the worst team in the NBA this season with a 6-41 record. They are far and away the worst in the league. Even though their roster boasts some competent talent with the potential of their young players in Jordan Poole, Alex Sarr, Bub Carrington, Bilal Coulibaly and Kyle Kuzma, their roster has been a trainwreck so far.
This is especially embarrassing given Kuzma’s ill-fated remarks about the Detroit Pistons last season. He claimed that every team in the league was fighting not to be the team that would lose to the Pistons. Detroit would go on to set the record for the most consecutive losses in a single season in NBA history, although the Wizards might give them a run for their money.
They have they lost 16 games in a row, which is 12 shy of the Pistons 28-game losing streak last season. However, with a win percentage of just .128, the Wizards are on track to finish the season with one of the worst records in NBA history. Their current win pace would suggest that the team will finish with somewhere around 10-11 wins, which would be 5 games worse than their 15-67 record last year.
Which are the worst seasons for a team in NBA history?
Regardless of their performance, NBA fans will continue to watch the Washington Wizards season eagerly to see how far down the ladder the team can fall. As the Wizards continue to slide towards one of the worst seasons in NBA history, it begs the question: what are the worst seasons in NBA history?
Before we dive into the list, there is the added criteria of only teams that played in the ABA or NBA qualifying for this list. Unfortunately, the fan-favourite Providence Steamrollers and their infamous 1947-48 season with a 6-42 record in the BAA will not qualify for this list. With that out of the way, let’s take a look at the worst seasons by a team in NBA history, ranked by their winning percentage.
1. 2011-12 Charlotte Bobcats (7-59, .106)
Teams in the NBA have been bad, but no team has ever been as bad as the Charlotte Bobcats in the 2011-12 season. The Bobcats hold the record for the lowest winning percentage in NBA history. It happened during the lockout-shortened 2011-12 season.
The team managed only 7 wins out of 66 games. A combination of roster inexperience, lack of star power, and injuries contributed to their dismal performance. It led to historically and statistically the worst season in NBA History.
2. 1972-73 Philadelphia 76ers (9-73, .110)
The Bobcats only took over the record for the worst season of all time fairly recently. Before the abominable Bobcats existed, the crown for the worst season of all time belonged to none other than the Philadelphia 76ers.
Before the Bobcats’ 2011-12 season, the 1972-73 Philadelphia 76ers held the record for the worst NBA season. They finished with a 9-73 record, which would be the true anti-thesis to the best season in NBA history – the 2015-16 Golden State Warriors, who went 73-9.
3. 2015-16 Philadelphia 76ers (10-72, .122)
The 76ers have a penchant for repeating history, and they would do so in the worst possible way in the 2015-16 NBA season. It was another challenging year for the Philadelphia 76ers.
The season ended with a 10-72 record. This would also be the season that ‘The Process’ would be at its peak, with the team tanking to gain a high pick for the majority of the season.
4. 1992-93 Dallas Mavericks (11-71, .134)
Before the Dallas Mavericks ever struck gold in the NBA draft lottery by selecting Dirk Nowitzki, the team went through some really bad seasons. The worst of those seasons would be their 1992-93 campaign.
The Mavericks’ 1992-93 season is among the worst in NBA history. The team faced numerous challenges, including injuries and roster issues, leading to a final record of 11-71.
5. 1997-98 Denver Nuggets (11-71, .134)
The 1997-98 Denver Nuggets fell in a weird place with rookie head coach Bill Hanzlik taking over from Dick Motta. He would subsequently lead the Nuggets to the second-worst record in NBA history at the time.
Moreover, the record still holds the record for the worst season by a rookie HC. He would be fired immediately after the season, and be replaced by an American-Italian coach – Mike D’Antoni.
6. 1986-87 Los Angeles Clippers (12-70, .146)
Before the 1997-98 Nuggets took their place on the podium, the 1986-67 Los Angeles Clippers held the record for the second-worst season in NBA history by winning percentage.
In just their third season in after moving to Los Angeles, the Clippers would finish with a 12-70 record, tied for the 7th worst all-time, while their LA counterparts would go on to hoist the Larry O’Brien trophy.
7. 2009-10 New Jersey Nets (12-70, .146)
Just a few seasons before the Nets would make the move to Brooklyn, the New Jersey Nets would put up an all-time stinker for the ages.
They finished with a 12-70 record in the ’09-’10 NBA season. They are tied with the 1986-87 Clippers for the 7th worst record of all time.
8. 2004-05 Atlanta Hawks (13-69, .159)
The 2004-05 Atlanta Hawks fell into a weird place in NBA history. They had a serviceable roster in terms of talents, but their stars were all either out of their prime or too early to enter their prime.
Although they had some solid players like Antoine Walker, Josh Smith, Boris Diaw and Kenny Anderson, they would barely get out the door before deciding to go on an all-out tank – perhaps unintentionally.
9. 1993-94 Dallas Mavericks (13-69, .159)
Just when the Mavericks would have thought that the worst was behind them after an 11-win 1992-93 season, they would follow it up with just 2 more wins in the 1993-94 season.
The team failed to make any substantial moves in the offseason, leading to a fairly dismal record once again. The history of the Mavericks had more troubling times in the beginning before triumphing with Dirk Nowitzki.
10. 1998-99 Vancouver Grizzlies (8-42, .160)
In the lockout-shortened 1998-99 season, the Vancouver Grizzlies managed only 8 wins against 42 losses. While they get the added benefit of only having played a 50-game season, which makes their record a little more digestible, they would still go on to record one of the worst seasons by win percentage in NBA history, with just a .160.
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Armaan Gupta
(377 Articles Published)