While the Pistons rewrote the wrong kind of history with a lengthy losing streak, their fans lost in more ways than one.
Not only did the Detroit faithful watch their favorite team rack up consecutive losses at a historic rate, but they also missed out on a Wingstop promotion that's directly tied to the Pistons' success.
In early December, a Detroit-based X account unearthed a promotion offering customers five free boneless wings at select Detroit area Wingstops when the Pistons win. The only problem with the promotion was that the Pistons' losing streak was nearing 20 games and the team had not won in over five weeks.
MORE: How Pistons made NBA history with now-infamous losing streak
Fast forward another three weeks and the Pistons tied an NBA record with 28 consecutive losses before finally putting the streak behind them by virtue of a two-point win over the Raptors.
And while the Pistons have won three games during the 2023-24 season, a closer investigation would suggest that Detroit's win over Toronto might be the first time that its fans would be able to take advantage of the promotion.
The biggest piece of evidence would be the final score graphics shared to the Pistons' official account on X.
After defeating Chicago on Oct. 28, @DetroitPistons shared a score graphic featuring second-year big man Jalen Duren. Present in the graphic were Duren, the final score and logos representing the Pistons and Bulls. That's all.
I said WELCOME TO DETROIT CITY pic.twitter.com/u9m7Fim1da
— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) October 29, 2023
The same setup was present for the first loss of the historic streak on Oct. 30. Pictured were Pistons guard Killian Hayes and logos representing Detroit and its opponent, Oklahoma City.
On Nov. 24, the Pistons suffered their 13th consecutive loss, falling 136-113 to the Pacers in an In-Season Tournament meeting. It is the first score graphic of the season that also features the Wingstop logo.
Final pic.twitter.com/7WLoEZWNQw
— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) November 25, 2023
It's unclear whether or not that's when the promotion began, but it's unlikely that the inclusion of the logo is coincidental. It's also notable that the above user unearthed the promotion on Dec. 7, which would align with the promotion beginning in late November.
Coupled with news of the promotion, the Wingstop logo being included in graphics has taken on a life of its own.
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At one point, Pistons graphic designers notably moved the Wingstop logo, seemingly in response to a user who pointed out that the graphic made it look like the Pistons were suffering losses at the hands of Wingstop.
— Detroit Pistons (@DetroitPistons) December 14, 2023
If you're wondering whether or not Wingstop has noticed, they have. After SportsCenter posted the backfired promotion to Instagram, Wingstop's official account commented, "we could do 5 free wings for every L, because you guys deserve a W."
Based on the premise that the promotion began when the logo was first included in final score graphics, the Pistons are 0-15 in that span and their fans have missed out on 75 free wings.
Now, with each Pistons loss, "Wingstop" is a trending topic on X. Surely, the chicken chain will trend if and when the Pistons ultimately snap their streak.
