Worst Records in NBA History: Looking at the Saddest Seasons of All Time

Over the course of its long and illustrious history, the NBA has seen dynamic players create dynasties that dominated. There have been iconic performances, incredible underdog stories and unmatched athleticism on display.

There’s also been some pretty atrocious teams. In many ways, being terrible makes a team just as memorable as being great. There’s something about watching a trainwreck (figuratively) that sticks in our memories.

So today, we’re looking back at the NBA teams with the worst single season records in history.

For the purposes of this article, we’re going to focus solely on the teams with the most losses in a single season.

It’s important to clarify considering there are so many elements that can factor into a bad season. Maybe a star player demands a trade, maybe there’s tumult in the front office. Perhaps a team announces it is relocating.

All of these things can make a season terrible. But for today, we’re looking simply at the standings.

The Philadelphia 76ers hold the unfortunate record of being the only team in NBA history to lose 70-plus games in multiple seasons. However, it is the Dallas Mavericks that hold the record for most losses over a two-year period, racking up 140 of them from 1992 to ’94.

1. 1972–73 Philadelphia 76ers

The gold standard (if you will) of losing basketball games, the 1972–73 76ers were abysmal from start to finish. Philadelphia lost its first 15 games of the season, only to later go on a 20-game losing streak. The team won just two games on the road. Locally, they received the nickname ‘the nine-and-73-ers.’ Ouch.

1972–73 Record: 9–73
Draft Pick: No. 1
Selection: Doug Collins

2. 2015–16 Philadelphia 76ers

This season was part of the ‘The Process’ in Philadelphia, which was essentially a long-term tanking plan designed to acquire elite talent through the NBA draft. This team had virtually no experience, no depth and Joel Embiid sat out the entire year dealing with injuries. The team was 29th in offense, 29th in defense and one of the worst units to hit an NBA court. The team used the No. 1 overall pick to draft Ben Simmons, which, sort of helped?

1972-73 Record: 10–72
Draft Pick: No. 1
Selection: Ben Simmons

3. 1992–93 Dallas Mavericks

The early 1990s were a rough time for the Mavs. This season saw the team’s top rookie, Jim Jackson, miss most of the season with a contract dispute. Fat Lever also missed the entire season with an injury, meaning the team could really only rely on Derek Harper. The team drafted Jamal Mashburn with the fourth overall pick and he made an immediate impact in Dallas.

Season Record: 11–71
Draft Pick: No. 4
Draft Selection: Jamal Mashburn

4. 1997–98 Denver Nuggets

It was a rough go all around for Denver this season, as the team had basically no veteran leadership, lost its coach after the season, didn’t secure the No. 1 overall pick and lost its two most promising players (Bobby Jackson and Tony Battie) in the offseason.

Season Record: 11–71
Draft Pick: No. 3
Draft Selection: Raef LaFrentz

5. 2009–10 New Jersey Nets

On paper, this might be the best roster of the list so far. The Nets had Devin Harris, Brook Lopez and second-year man Courtney Lee, but they were a disaster. New Jersey began the season with 18-straight losses and used three different head coaches during the year. The following year the team would be in Brooklyn. Not much of a send off for New Jersey.

Season Record: 12–70
Draft Pick: No. 3
Draft Selection: Derrick Favors

6. 1986–87 Los Angeles Clippers

This Clippers team was led by Michael Cage, who had a steady if somewhat pedestrian NBA career. The most notable thing about Cage is his incredible collection of nicknames: John Shaft, Windexman and Juice Man. Los Angeles also got a near career year from guard Mike Woodson.

Season Record: 12–70
Draft Pick: No. 4
Draft Selection: Reggie Williams

7. 1993–94 Dallas Mavericks

After winning just 11 games in 1992–93, the Mavericks figured things could only go up. Fortunately for them, things did go up, just not by much. Dallas won just 13 games with three young players (Mashburn, Jackson and Popeye Jones) leading the way.

Season Record: 13–69
Draft Pick: No. 2
Draft Selection: Jason Kidd

8. 2004–05 Atlanta Hawks

The lone bright spot for this Atlanta season, which saw the team lose 32 of its final 35 games, is that rookie Josh Smith won the dunk contest during All-Star Weekend. Smith and fellow rookie Josh Childress would both be named to the NBA All-Rookie Second Team.

Season Record: 13–69
Draft Pick: No. 2
Draft Selection: Marvin Williams

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