The Philadelphia 76ers made waves this week when Sam Hinkie resigned as general manager after his tanking strategy fell out of favor. The Sixers have become the new posterchild for NBA futility because of their recent impotence, but when it comes to being consistent losers they are not alone.
Here are four franchises whose playoff droughts exceed the Sixers' four seasons.
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Phoenix Suns
The Suns have been one of the more consistent NBA franchises over the past 30 years or so, until lately. From the 1988-89 season through the 2009-10 season, the Suns missed the playoffs just three times. But since falling to Kobe Bryant’s Laker squad in that 2009-10 season, the Suns haven’t been back to the playoffs. This year makes five in a row.
Detroit Pistons
Like the Suns, the Pistons were a perennial playoff team for a long time. They went to the playoffs eight seasons in a row starting in 2002 and were in the Eastern Conference Finals every year from 2003 to 2008. But that came to an end after the team was swept by LeBron James' 2009 Cleveland Cavaliers squad. Since then, the Pistons have finished with at least 50 losses every season except the lockout shortened 2011-2012 season.
The good news is, they will likely be exiting this list. The Pistons are 42-37 and have a three-game lead on the Bulls for the Eastern Conference’s final playoff spot with three games remaining.
Sacramento Kings
The Kings busted out of obscurity behind Chris Webber, Jason Williams and Vlade Divac during the 1999 lockout season, starting a run of eight straight playoff seasons that came to an end after the 2005-06 season. Since then, the Kings have been regulars in the NBA cellar, failing to even break the 40-wins mark.
They’ll likely be trying to end that drought next year with a new coach as George Karl appears to be on his way out. Divac, now the team's general manager, has vowed to evaluate everything this summer and make necessary changes.
“I do believe that we have talent, that we’ve got good assets here,” Divac said last month. “I’m not pleased with the results we’ve had this year, but it’s something that we have to talk about after the season and make good decisions moving forward."
Minnesota Timberwolves
And finally, we reach the bottom. The Timberwolves reached the Western Conference Finals behind Kevin Garnett, Sam Cassell and Latrell Sprewell in 2004, and they’ve yet to get back to the postseason. They looked to be a dark horse early this season, then promptly fell out of the picture.
After Tuesday's win over the Golden State Warriors, there is optimism that next season could be a lucky one.