Written by Carolyn Hastings

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Sure, 8-22 looks bad on paper. Doesn't feel so good in real life, either. But there's something to be said for consistency.

The Cavs blasted onto the scene in 1970 with an inaugural season that still leads ESPN's Worst NBA Teams Ever list. This is not an easy feat. To achieve this prestigious rank, you must lose nearly every one of the first 27 games during a regular 82 game season. Walt Wesley did his best to keep us closer to the best of the worst with a 17.7 FG average. Overcoming Walt's stubborn insistence on excellence, the Cavs achieved (and have continued to hold) the Worst of the Awful title for 40 years with a stunning 1-26. Could have been worse.

The '97-'98 Nuggets, and previously, the '92-'93 and '93-'94 Dallas Mavericks tried to nudge us out of place with 2-25 seasons. Little did they know how futile the efforts of Jim Jackson and Derek-who-is-not-Ron Harper, in fact the efforts of the entire NBA, to knock the Cavs off that twisted, tarnished throne would be for the next four decades.

Still, there were contenders. The Bulls pulled off a neat 3-24 in the season of Elton Brand ('00-'01). Cleveland stifled a giggle. Nice try. We won't even mention the '72-'73 Sixers, Fred Carter averaging 20 points, foreshadowing the Bulls run for the top of the list 30 years later. Philly ending that sad season 9-73. We won't mention that, either.

In 1980, Dallas made the list a third time with Geoff Huston at 5-22. Three spots? We may be #1 in losses for all time but still . . . 3 spots? The following season, fueled by a competitive rage, we made a splash again, limping through a 6-27 run, nearly ruined by Mike Mitchell's 19.6 average. Someone didn't get the memo.

And there it stands. The Mavs may have 3 of the worst NBA teams ever. But we're #1, with an And One. The Worst of the Awful. We may lose a lot of games, but that record is hard to beat.