Ranking The Worst NBA Teams Of All Time – 10 Squads With Historically Poor Records

Throughout the NBA’s rich history, there have been many awe-inspiring players and formidable teams that won multiple championships and broke numerous NBA records. Nevertheless, the topic of this article won’t be the best NBA teams who revolutionized the game of basketball with their jaw-dropping performances. 

Quite the opposite, I’ll cover the teams whose performances were jaw-dropping, but not in a good way. You’ll see who are the worst NBA teams ever, looking at their winning percentage, record, and how bad of an impression they left, in general, to their fans.

Read on and discover the top 10 worst NBA teams of all time!

#10 – 2002/03 Cleveland Cavaliers

Record and winning percentage: 17-65 (.207)

Basketball fans are familiar that the Cleveland Cavaliers franchise isn’t among the best in the NBA, and the 2002/03 squad was probably the worst in the club’s history. Although, they had two seasons that ended with 15 wins (1970/71 and 1981/82). 

In terms of scoring, these Cavaliers were 25th out of 29 teams with 91.4 PPG and the second-worst NBA team in conceded PPG with 101.0. 

This Cleveland Cavaliers team only won 17 games, and their on-court performance was horrible, to say at least, and hard to watch for the fans. They did surprise many of their beloved fans when they beat the, at the time, NBA champions, the LA Lakers, in the fourth game of the season. After that, they had a 15-loss streak.  

The Cavaliers’ 02/03 season was disastrous, but they still managed to get the first pick of the 2003 NBA draft, their future superstar, Lebron James. 

Also, players like Ricky Davis and Zydrunas Ilgauskas were the bright stars who carried the team and didn’t let the Cavaliers end the season with a worse winning percentage. Davis averaged 20.6 points per game, while Ilgauskas managed to get 17.2 points per game.

#9 – 2000/01 Chicago Bulls

Record and winning percentage: 15-67 (.183)

The Bulls’ post-Jordan era was unimpressive, and the team was rebuilding. This season, Chicago had eight rookies on its roster and only a few veterans of the game. The majority of the rookies left the Bulls after a couple of years, but the one who stood out from the rest was Jamal Crawford. 

The 20-year-old Jamal averaged 9.3 points and 2.4 assists per game. The star of this subpar team was Elton Brand, who had impressive numbers, averaging 20.6 points and 10.1 rebounds per game. 

At the 2001 NBA Draft, the Bulls made a strange decision when they traded their best player, Elton Brand, for the 2nd pick of the draft, Tyson Chandler. Even though Chandler was a solid contributor to the team in his five-year stint at the Bulls, he wasn’t nearly as good as Brand. 

They also got Eddy Curry, who was the 4th pick at the draft. 

This season was horrendous because they had too many rookies who weren’t great. Also, they were the worst NBA team in PPG with 87.6 and 17th in conceded PPG with 96.7.

#8 – 1982/83 Houston Rockets

Record and winning percentage: 14-68 (.171)

One of the toughest seasons for the Houston Rockets was the 1982/83 season, with only 14 wins. This team was in the middle of a rebuild, with zero stars and a few experienced players. When we look at their roster, even die-hard basketball enthusiasts will have a hard time remembering the best players of this Rockets team. 

The star player on the roster was Allen Leavell, who led the team in scoring with 14.8 PPG, 6.7 APG, and 2.1 steals per game. The team’s power forward, James Bailey, was also helpful on the offense, averaging 14.1 PPG, and on defense, with 6.8 RPG (4.3 defensive RPG).

Apart from this duo, the whole team was struggling offensively, given the fact that they were 21st out of 23 teams (99.3 PPG) in the league in terms of scoring. On the other hand, they were 14th in conceded PPG (110.9). 

This Rockets team was reasonably good defensively, but their offense was severely lacking, which was the ultimate reason for their poorest season in history. 

However, the Houston Rockets did recover a couple of years later when the NBA superstar Hakeem Olajuwon joined the team. 

#7 – 2004/05 Atlanta Hawks

Record and winning percentage: 13-69 (.159)

A sad season for the Atlanta Hawks fans was 2004/05. This team was among the worst NBA teams defensively and offensively as well. They averaged only 92.7 PPG, one of the worst offense seasons in NBA history. Also, the Hawks were 29th in the league with 102.5 conceded PPG. They went on to lose 13 and 14 games in a row. 

Constant changes in the roster were no help to the Hawks since the rookie Josh Childress was the most consistent player, playing 75 games in the season with 10.1 PPG. Besides Josh Childress, another rookie who provided a glimmer of hope for the Hawks’ future was Josh Smith, who averaged 9.7 PPG and was one of their best players in the upcoming seasons. 

Atlanta also traded their star player, Jason Terry, for seasoned veterans Gary Payton and Tom Gugliotta, who were 36 and 35 years old, respectively. What’s even more bizarre is that the Hawks waived Payton, who went back to Boston, where Jason Terry was traded. 

But still, players like Al Harrington and Antoine Walker managed to steer the Hawks away from an even worse season. Harrington averaged 17.5 PPG, while Walker averaged 20.4 PPG.

The Hawks were terrible because they had many players with little experience and veterans who were past their prime. 

#6 – 1986/87 Los Angeles Clippers 

Record and winning percentage: 12-70 (.146)

The 1986/87 wasn’t just one season in the franchise when they were. This LA Clippers team was poor throughout the entire 80s. In the 86/87 season, they were doomed from the beginning since they failed to get a first-draft pick from the 1986 NBA Draft, and the owner didn’t want to spend money to bring in top-quality basketball players. 

Also, the team’s lead player, Marques Johnson, was injured for most of the season, playing only ten games with 16.6 PPG.

In Johnson’s absence, the squad’s most prolific point-scorer was Michael Cage, who put in some impressive numbers, averaging 15.7 PPG and 11.5 RPG. 

The Clippers were below average on both ends, even though seven players on the roster averaged more than 10 PPGs. Offensively, they were 21st out of 23 teams with 104.5 PPG, and defensively, they were 22nd with 115.9 PPG conceded, which is a testament to an overall embarrassing season. Also, they had losing streaks of 12, 14 as well as 16 games. 

#5 – 2009/10 New Jersey Nets

Record and winning percentage: 12-70 (.146)

The very start of the 2009/10 season was one of the worst for the Nets since they lost 18 games in a row. Before the season began, this team got a new owner, Mikhail Prokhorov, who sold numerous players, including the star player Vince Carter. 

The New Jersey team struggled on both sides of the court since they were the last in the league with only 92.4 PPG and 17th in the league with 101.5 PPG conceded. This wasn’t really a surprise since they had so few consistent point-scorers and a lack of star power. 

Undoubtedly, the best player on the Nets roster was Brook Lopez, who scored 18.8 PPG with 8.6 PPG. Apart from him, point guard Devin Harris was a solid contributor to the team, averaging 16.6 PPG with 6.6 APG. 

What’s pretty strange is that New Jersey also changed the head coach 3 times in one season. 

The 2009/10 season was a true nightmare for their fans. 

#4 – 1992/93 Dallas Mavericks

Record and winning percentage: 11-71 (.134)

The 1992/93 Dallas Mavericks were the worst NBA team in that season, with only 11 wins. They were offensively the second-worst team in the NBA in terms of PPG, with only 99.3, and the last team in conceded points per game (114.5). 

This Dallas team was unlucky since the All-Star player Fat Lever was out for the whole season because of an injury. Another key player, Roy Tarpley, was suspended since he had issues with substance and alcohol abuse, too. 

The Mavericks had a few good players, like Derek Harper, who had 18.2 PPG and 5.4 APG, and the rookie Jim Jackson, who averaged 16.3 and 4.7 but only played for 28 games. 

The Dallas Mavericks really struggled throughout the whole season and even had a 4-57 record. Nevertheless, they still somehow got 7 more wins, finishing this horrible season with a .134 winning percentage. 

#3 – 1997/98 Denver Nuggets

Record and winning percentage: 11-71 (.134)

The number three spot on the list of the worst NBA teams of all time goes to the 1997/98 Denver Nuggets. They had a tough season, scoring only 89 points per game and ranked 26th out of 29 teams in conceded points per game (100.8). 

The Nuggets started the season with 0-12, and later in the season, they had losing streaks of 16 and 23 games too. 

They failed to re-sign the legendary Dikembe Mutombo, leaving them with no superstars in the team. The Denver Nuggets also got the 3rd pick in the draft lottery and chose Raef LaFrentz, even though they could’ve chosen players like Dirk Nowitzki, Paul Pierce, or Vince Carter. 

Eric Williams was impressive, averaging 19.8 PPG, but he only played four times during the season. LaPhonso Ellis and Johnny Newman were more consistent and averaged 14.3 and 14.7 PPG, respectively. 

No one can deny that the performance of the 97/98 Denver Nuggets was an all-time low for the franchise. 

#2 – 1972/73 Philadelphia 76ers

Record and winning percentage: 9-73 (.110)

The second NBA team on this list is the 1972/73 Philadelphia 76ers, who finished the season with one of the worst NBA records ever, with only 9 wins. Just six seasons before, Philadelphia won the NBA title. 

A once-proud NBA franchise made a couple of bad management decisions by trading Wilt Chamberlain for far less efficient players, which ultimately led to the team’s demise. 

On both sides of the court, the Sixers were abysmal, with only 104.1 PPG, and they were the worst NBA team when we look at the conceded PPG (116.2). On different occasions, this team had four consecutive losing streaks: 13, 14, 15, as well as 20 games. 

Putting aside the dreadful season, the Sixers had a couple of solid contributors. Fred Carter was the leader, scoring 20.0 PPG. Then there was John Block with 17.9 PPG, and also Tom Van Arsdale, who averaged 17.7 PPG. 

#1 – 2011/12 Charlotte Bobcats

Record and winning percentage: 7-59 (.106)

The worst NBA team ever to grace the basketball court was the 2011/12 Charlotte Bobcats. They were last in the league regarding PPG with only 87.0 and 27th in conceded PPG (100.9). Throughout the 2011/12 campaign, the Charlotte Bobcats were just atrocious, ending the season with a terrible streak of 23 losses. A sad fact was that the second worst team after the Bobcats was the Wizards, who had 13 more wins. 

Gerald Henderson and Corey Maggette were the best players in terms of scoring, with 15.1 and 15.0 PPG, respectively. The rookie Kemba Walker was also solid, with 12.1 PPG and 4.4 APG. 

In this shortened season because of the lockout, the Bobcats weren’t so lucky even in the 2012 NBA Draft since they got Michael Kidd-Gilchrist as the 2nd pick instead of the better prospect, Anthony Davis.