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81-440: Žalgiris Kaunas has been the most successful team, having won 22 out of the 27 LKL Finals series that have been played so far. Lietuvos rytas Vilnius is the only other team to win the LKL Finals. Žalgiris Kaunas won the first 6 LKL Finals series, from 1994 to 1999. The team's dominance in the LKL Finals came to an end in the 2000 LKL Finals, when they lost to Lietuvos rytas Vilnius . During that same period, Žalgiris had also won

162-500: A 79–70 loss to Žalgiris Kaunas, problems began to surface. After losses to Avtodor Saratov 97–81 and Zenit Saint Petersburg 70–65 at home in the EuroCup, the team was booed off the court. Rytas also lost to PAOK 81–76, and rumors started about conflicts between coach Nicola and the team. Due to team's losing record Marcelo Nicola was fired. There were rumors he would be replaced by Tomas Pačėsas . Under coach Aurimas Jasilionis, however,

243-448: A contract extension with a team leader, who scores only 10 points in four final games, is not possible. Unlike Gecevičius, another Rytas leader Antanas Kavaliauskas signed a new three-year deal. Rytas also signed Deividas Gailius , who was Neptūnas Klaipėda's team leader. As a result, Simas Jasaitis had to leave the team. In a surprise move, Rytas signed Artūras Gudaitis , who was a member of their principal opponents Žalgiris Kaunas, and

324-632: A former member of the team and also a free agent. Rytas lost the LKF Cup final to Žalgiris Kaunas 81–69. The Top 16 phase was the most successful of its three attempts for the team. Playing in the Group E in EuroLeague, Lietuvos rytas defeated Caja Laboral at home, Panathinaikos Athens and Unicaja Málaga on the road. The last round remaining, the team had a chance to finish first in their Top 16 E group. However, Lietuvos rytas lost to Caja Laboral and took third place in

405-588: A major role in scoring the fourth victory in a row against Maccabi (away, by 5 points). Lietuvos rytas completed a road victory against Cibona Zagreb on 31 January 2008, which completed the Euroleague regular season for them allowed them to remain in the first spot in the Group B securing a favorable position in the first pool before the Top 16 draw together with CSKA Moscow , Real Madrid and Panathinaikos Athens . Their 11–3 record

486-405: A near-loss game against Triumph Lyubertsy 94–90. Lietuvos rytas was not as successful in the 2009–10 EuroLeague as before—they lost the deciding game against Unicaja Málaga, took fifth place in Group B and did not advance to the Top 16. However, their rivalry with Žalgiris Kaunas continued. After winning the LKF Cup 77–65, Lietuvos rytas had problems with player injuries and suffered a loss in

567-634: A positive start to the pre-season by winning a friendly tournament in Alytus and then the Vladas Garastas Cup, where they defeated the EuroLeague participant Khimki in the final 85–84. Rytas also started the LKL in dominating fashion. The return to the Siemens Arena at the start of the 2015–16 EuroCup season , ended with a 91–87 defeat to Beşiktaş J.K . The team then defeateded Szolnoki Olaj 89–65. After

648-427: A second spot in the regular LKL season. The winning streak ended on the final day of the regular season, with an 82–81 loss to Žalgiris Kaunas. With the loss, Rytas entered the playoffs as the second seed team. The referees' decisions sparked many discussions. Consequently, Rytas asked LKL to hire foreign-born referees during the semifinals and the grand finals to completely guarantee referee impartiality. Their request

729-605: A significantly lower budget. Also, they put a greater emphasis on prospective local players. Lietuvos rytas won the first Baltic Basketball Presidents Cup during this season. On 21 October 2008, Lietuvos rytas had its first chance to play against an NBA basketball club the Golden State Warriors at Oracle Arena . Lietuvos rytas lost the game 126–106. Lietuvos rytas was affected by a worldwide financial crisis in late 2008 and early 2009. Even if they lost two of its leading foreign players, Lietuvos rytas still managed to reach

810-479: A successful season during 2007–08 EuroLeague, defeating Unicaja Málaga and Armani Jeans Milano . Lietuvos rytas defeated Maccabi Tel Aviv, the future EuroLeague finalist. On 1 November, Lietuvos rytas defeated Maccabi by 18 points at home for a third time in a row as Artūras Jomantas led the team with 19 points and became the week's co-MVP with Erazem Lorbek , both having performance index ratings of 29. Hollis Price (19 points) and Chuck Eidson (28 points) played

891-543: A week later. On 15 November, they lost to Pieno žvaigždės Pasvalys 87–85. On 28 December, Rytas also lost to Neptūnas 94–90 in their home arena. On 1 January 2015, Rytas failed to win the second game against Žalgiris in Kaunas, losing 91–77. On 8 March 2015, Rytas had shown positive signs under their new head coach Nicola. They defeated Žalgiris Kaunas in Vilnius 93–66. Žalgiris Kaunas' assistant coach Šarūnas Jasikevičius described

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972-542: Is the annual award that is given by the professional Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL), to the Most Valuable Player of each season's LKL Finals. Gintaras Einikis was the winner of the first Finals MVP award, in 1994. So far 5 players, Einikis, Arvydas Macijauskas , Tanoka Beard , Paulius Jankūnas and Edgaras Ulanovas , have won multiple Finals MVP awards. To date, Beard is the only non-Lithuanian player to win multiple Finals MVP awards. The current holder of

1053-444: Is used for the development of young players and plays in the second-tier NKL . In 1963, the first basketball team from Vilnius, called Žalgiris, was formed. The following year it changed its name to Plastikas. In that same year, 1964, Plastikas players joined a new team, called Statyba . This name was used for over 30 years. Jonas Kazlauskas , Rimas Girskis , and then-head coach Rimantas Endrijaitis led Statyba to third place in

1134-484: The 2015 LKF Cup . They defeated Dzūkija Alytus 78–63 in the quarterfinals, and Šiauliai 71–61 in the semifinals. However, Rytas lost the season's first trophy to principal rival Žalgiris Kaunas 82–76 at the finals and extended their trophy drought. On 4 March, Lietuvos rytas played the first game of the EuroCup playoffs against Pınar Karşıyaka . Despite having a double-digit lead multiple times, Rytas failed to secure

1215-589: The 2015 NBA draft . Before starting his professional career, Gudaitis played in the RKL with the LCC Klaipėda for one season. The next two seasons he played in NKL , and on his last season with Žalgiris-2 Kaunas he won a bronze medal. Gudaitis was respectively nominated as a most promising young player of the league on the same year. On 6 August 2013, Gudaitis signed a professional contract with Žalgiris Kaunas for two years and

1296-554: The ACB semifinals, and of one of four spots reserved for Spain, allowed Lietuvos rytas to take part in the 2007–08 EuroLeague as the ULEB Cup finalist. On 27 April 2007, Lietuvos rytas won their second consecutive BBL title; Kareem Rush was named the Final Four MVP . The LKL finals and LKF Cup finals were both unsuccessful, though, as Žalgiris Kaunas won both tournaments. Lietuvos rytas had

1377-713: The Jeep Arena and they share the ASG Arena with BC Wolves for their European home games. The club was founded in 1997 from another club, BC Statyba . Notable members of the club include Šarūnas Marčiulionis , Šarūnas Jasikevičius , Ramūnas Šiškauskas , Arvydas Macijauskas , Jonas Valančiūnas , Martynas Gecevičius , Renaldas Seibutis , Simas Jasaitis , Robertas Javtokas , Darius Songaila , Marijonas Petravičius , Rimantas Kaukėnas , Rimas Kurtinaitis , Gintaras Einikis , Deividas Sirvydis , Rokas Giedraitis , Artūras Gudaitis , Ąžuolas Tubelis . The team's farm club Rytas-2

1458-810: The Siemens Arena . Thirdly, Rytas withdrew from the Russian VTB League. Virginijus Šeškus , a former multiple LKL bronze medalist with Prienai, was signed as head coach of the team, along with his past team members Artūras Valeika and Mindaugas Lukauskis, who played six seasons in Rytas previously. Club owner Gedvydas Vainauskas said shortly afterward that the enthusiastic Šeškus reminds him of former team coach Rimas Kurtinaitis, who led Rytas to its biggest victories in club history. Lithuania's national team member Adas Juškevičius and former NBA player Travis Leslie were signed in as well. On 15 October 2014, Rytas started

1539-418: The 1979 Soviet Union Championship . Three years later, Šarūnas Marčiulionis joined the team and became its leader. In 1987, Artūras Karnišovas joined the team at the age of 16. In 1994, Statyba won bronze medals in their first LKL season. In 1995, Lietuvos rytas began sponsoring Sūduva Marijampolė , a basketball club from Marijampolė , Lithuania. The partnership lasted for two seasons, during which

1620-485: The 2013–14 EuroLeague season with an 84–83 victory against Panathinaikos Athens after Renaldas Seibutis's winning shot in overtime . The game was selected as EuroLeague's Game of the Week and re-broadcast in over 150 countries worldwide. However, after this, the team experienced a decline and Rytas was unable to win any more games. Six games were lost by 10 points or more and it ended being the worst Lietuvos rytas season ever in

1701-519: The 2018–2019 season. Despite having played only 21 games in the Euroleague during the season, he was one of its most efficient players, and was considered one of the league's top centers prior to the injury. On 10 July 2020 Gudaitis moved to Russian club Zenit of the VTB United League and the EuroLeague on a two-year deal. He left the team after the 2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine and spent

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1782-453: The BBL Finals to their rivals from Kaunas, 73–66. However, Lietuvos rytas won the LKL trophy, beating Žalgiris Kaunas 4–3. It was the second consecutive LKL title for the Vilnius team. After the conclusion of the season, head coach Rimas Kurtinaitis left the club to be replaced by Dražen Anzulović . The 2010–11 EuroLeague season Lietuvos rytas' fourth season. After an unsuccessful start of

1863-549: The BBL finals) to its rival. Following the conclusion of the season, Tyrese Rice , Lawrence Roberts , Aleksandar Rašić and Jonas Valančiūnas left the team. After losing most of their leaders during the summer, Rytas formed a younger squad. Players like Nemanja Nedović were expected to be the future of the team. However, the season was not very successful. Rytas lost the Lithuanian Supercup to Žalgiris Kaunas. After struggling in

1944-411: The EuroCup season with a 92–65 victory over Serbian powerhouse Partizan Belgrade . They finished first round with an 8–2 record and took first place in the group. On 16 December, Kšyštof Lavrinovič signed a two-year deal with Rytas. On 5 January 2015, Simas Jasaitis, another Lithuanian national team member, also signed with Rytas for the third time in his career. While Lavrinovič quickly became one of

2025-477: The EuroCup. After the loss, coach Jasilionis was replaced by longtime assistant coach Arvydas Gronskis. After another loss, this time to Zenit Saint Petersburg 94–84, Rytas lost all hope of qualifying for the Last-32 stage. In the final game, Rytas lost to PAOK 88–81 at home, finishing with a 2–8 record. After the EuroCup fiasco, coach Gronskis was sent to the reserve team Perlas Vilnius again, and Tomas Pačėsas became

2106-443: The EuroLeague - a disappointing 1–9 record. After this, coach Dirk Bauermann was fired and replaced by Aleksandar Petrović . The change helped and on 22 December, Rytas crushed its rival Žalgiris Kaunas 90–58. After being eliminated in the EuroCup playoffs by Crvena zvezda Belgrade , Lietuvos rytas also suffered a defeat in the LKF Cup finals - losing to TonyBet Prienai 92–91. This led to the firing of coach Aleksandar Petrović, who

2187-491: The FIBA Champions Cup regional stage (though losing to Hemofarm Vršac in the final stage). The team also debuted in the ULEB Cup, getting to the quarterfinals but losing to Hapoel Jerusalem. After not winning any titles in the past two seasons, Lietuvos rytas recruited Vlade Đurović as a new coach. Midway through the season, Frederick House , the team leader, suffered a season-ending injury. Đurović later resigned and

2268-699: The Kings during the 2016 NBA Summer League . On 8 February 2018, the Cleveland Cavaliers acquired rights to Gudaitis after they completed a three-team trade with the Sacramento Kings and Utah Jazz . Gudaitis represented Lithuania at the U–18 youth tournament in Poland, 2011. His team took 5th place in the tournament, where Gudaitis scored 11.3 points, grabbed 6.2 rebounds and had 1.4 blocks per game. In 2015 Gudaitis

2349-548: The LKL and BBL finals, losing to Žalgiris Kaunas . Before the 2005–06 season, Neven Spahija became the head coach of the team. After losing their first two matches, Lietuvos rytas matched the EuroLeague record by winning seven consecutive EuroLeague fixtures, defeating as FC Barcelona , champions Maccabi Tel Aviv (twice) and Efes Pilsen Istanbul. Those wins allowed Rytas to advance to the Top 16 phase, where they won three times out of six, beating Tau Ceramica Vitoria once and Brose Baskets Bamberg twice. However, Lietuvos rytas

2430-510: The LKL finals to Žalgiris. After dismissing Milko Bjelica , Kenan Bajramović , D. J. Strawberry , Cemal Nalga and losing team leader Martynas Gecevičius , Lietuvos rytas replaced eight players. The beginning of the season was not very successful as Lietuvos rytas did not win EuroLeague's qualification tournament, which was organized in Vilnius . Lietuvos rytas won their first two matches against Budućnost Podgorica and Cibona Zagreb , but lost

2511-505: The VTB playoffs, with Donetsk defeating Rytas in the deciding game. Coach Maskoliūnas was fired and replaced by Dirk Bauermann . Rytas began to play much better, and in April scored an away win over Žalgiris Kaunas—the first in almost two years. Rytas made the LKL finals for the 15th time in a row. However, Žalgiris Kaunas easily swept Lietuvos rytas 4–0 in the final. Due to the unsuccessful past season,

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2592-684: The award is Marcus Foster . BC Lietuvos rytas Rytas Vilnius is a professional basketball club based in Vilnius , Lithuania . They compete domestically in the Lithuanian Basketball League and the King Mindaugas Cup , while internationally in the FIBA Champions League since 2020–21 . Rytas have won two EuroCup titles, seven Lithuanian League titles, five LKF / King Mindaugas Cups and three Baltic championships . The team plays its domestic home games in

2673-558: The club did not receive a wild card to the tournament and had to play in the second-tier league EuroCup for a second straight season. Rytas began signing new team members early on. Billy Baron , Mike Moser, and Travis Leslie left the team. Marcelo Nicola remained as the head coach of the team, despite the disastrous LKL finals. Then one of the CSU Asesoft Ploiești leaders Marius Runkauskas replaced Martynas Gecevičius. The club's president said later in an interview said that

2754-406: The final game against Galatasaray by a score of 71–63. As a result, Lietuvos rytas had to play at the second-tier European competition, EuroCup. The team, led by Renaldas Seibutis , Jonas Valančiūnas and Tyrese Rice , made it to the quarterfinal round for the fifth time in a row and defeated BC Donetsk , qualifying to the 2012 Eurocup Basketball Final Four , but lost to Valencia Basket 80–70 in

2835-407: The final player on Rytas' in the summer of 2015. On 19 August, first training camp was held. On 4 September, Krasta Auto (Lithuania's authorised BMW dealer) became one of the club sponsors, giving 14 new cars to club members and replacing the former vehicle sponsor Škoda Auto . The agreement was signed for three years. On 23 September, Kavaliauskas was chosen captain of the team. Rytas had

2916-589: The finals 0–4 once again. "I don't know how they got this information, but they tried to lure me. <...> Vilnius. Family. Challenge. Beloved team. BC Lietuvos rytas had more levers at his side." — Antanas Kavaliauskas , describing his "Loyalty..." message in Twitter , which he wrote after rejecting the identical contract from the LKL champions Žalgiris Kaunas that competed in the EuroLeague . On 5 July 2015, Lietuvos rytas president Gedvydas Vainauskas admitted that

2997-489: The finals in 2000. Over an 11-year period, from 2000 to 2010, all of the LKL Finals were won by the two clubs, with Lietuvos rytas winning 5 LKL Finals series, and Žalgiris Kaunas winning 6 LKL Finals series. Starting with the 2011 LKL Finals, Žalgiris Kaunas began another long run of dominance, winning 10 straight LKL Finals series, from 2011 to 2021. List of winning head coaches: The LKL Finals Most Valuable Player Award

3078-581: The first half, Kšyštof Lavrinovič did the same in the second half with 17 points as well, but the team failed to receive solid support from the team captain Martynas Gecevičius (4 points, 0/5 three-pointers) and one of the key players Gediminas Orelik (2 points, 1/6 field goals). During the second game, Rytas was defeated 78–62 in Vilnius. All-season team leaders Gecevičius, Kavaliauskas and Orelik together scored only 13 points. Žalgiris Kaunas won two more games, 71–68 after overtime and 85–77. Rytas lost

3159-463: The game as a "shame". Following the fiasco in the EuroCup, on 15 March, Rytas defeated Neptūnas 87–86 for the second time in Klaipėda after a goal by Mike Moser with only 0.6 second remaining, and firmly improved the chances of taking the first spot during the regular LKL season. On 13 April, Rytas defeated Neptūnas 84–75 for the third time, for its 16th straight victory in LKL, and guaranteeing at least

3240-567: The game until the final seconds. The match finished with an 81–81 tie; the series winner was to be decided in Turkey. On 11 March, Rytas players failed to show any promise of winning the game. The deficit after the first two quarters was 34–53. The result was 97–81, ending the two-time EuroCup champion Rytas' career early that year. In LKL, Rytas' start was uneasy. On 19 October 2014, they suffered their first defeat against Žalgiris Kaunas 84–82 in Vilnius, although, they defeated Neptūnas Klaipėda 73–65

3321-477: The group. Their ninth-place finish in EuroLeague is the highest achievement for the team in this tournament in club history. However, Rytas lost in the semifinals at the Baltic Basketball League, to VEF Rīga and finished in third place for the first time in club history. Head coach Trifunović was fired and replaced by assistant coach Darius Maskoliūnas . The team's game improved, but Rytas still lost

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3402-436: The interseason, the 2006–07 ULEB Cup season was rather successful for Lietuvos rytas. Two coaches were replaced during the season: Sharon Drucker from Israel was replaced by Slovenian Zmago Sagadin and the latter by his assistant coach Aleksandar Trifunović from Serbia . NBA player Kareem Rush arrived to lead the team to the ULEB Cup final where Real Madrid defeated Lietuvos rytas. However, Real Madrid's victory at

3483-515: The latter half of the 2021–2022 season with the Italian club Napoli Basket . On 20 July 2022, Gudaitis signed a one-year deal with Greek powerhouse Panathinaikos , returning once more to the EuroLeague . In 29 EuroLeague games, he averaged 7.5 points and 3.7 rebounds, playing around 17 minutes per contest. Additionally, in 33 domestic league matches, he averaged 7.9 points and 4.8 rebounds, playing around 16 minutes per contest. On 3 July 2023, Gudaitis

3564-439: The leaders of Lietuvos rytas, the decision to sign Jasaitis backfired as Jasaitis had only few and far better games and was mostly relegated as a reserve. Lietuvos rytas started the last 32-game stage in the EuroCup by winning against the best team in Poland, Turów Zgorzelec which was relegated to EuroCup after winning only one game in the EuroLeague's regular season. Despite a successful start, Rytas lost three games out of six in

3645-479: The manager decided to almost completely rebuild the team: eight players left after the team lost the LKL finals to Žalgiris Kaunas, its rival. Former team leader Martynas Gecevičius was recalled after a two-season break and a notable point guard Omar Cook was signed. Because the team was second in the domestic league, it had to hope for a EuroLeague wild card. The team did not receive it, and had to participate in EuroLeague's qualification tournament once again, which

3726-751: The new owners did not want to continue the team's history and renamed it Statyba-Lietuvos rytas, then just Lietuvos rytas. The newspaper's investment helped the club to establish itself as one of the two best in Lithuania, the other being Žalgiris from the country's second-largest city Kaunas . During its first season, BC Rytas won a bronze medal in the LKL . In the following season, Rytas won LKL silver, losing to reigning EuroLeague champions Žalgiris Kaunas. The team also took second place in 1997 William Jones Cup . In 2000, Ramūnas Šiškauskas , Andrius Giedraitis and Eric Elliott , combined with Arvydas Macijauskas and Robertas Javtokas , managed to win LKL. The team

3807-432: The only player to participate in the final three times in total and, later, the only two-time EuroCup champion. Going into the finals, Rytas was considered an underdog against BC Khimki of Russia. However, the performances of Steponas Babrauskas (18 points) and Marijonas Petravičius (20 points) allowed the team to win the final. Lietuvos rytas made a 15–0 run, having left their rivals scoreless for six straight minutes in

3888-579: The opening months, Lietuvos rytas fired coach Aleksandar Džikić , promoting Darius Maskoliūnas as head coach. Though the game had improved, thanks to Leon Radošević , Renaldas Seibutis and Nemanja Nedović, the EuroLeague season was finished with a 2–8 record. The team did not fare much better in the VTB United League. After Leon Radošević and Predrag Samardžiski were released, Rytas signed Milt Palacio , Tomislav Zubčić and Patrick O'Bryant . The rookies were not much help, however, and Rytas still missed

3969-436: The previous year, taking only third place, Rytas lost any chance of qualifying for the EuroLeague that year. The team was not invited to the qualifying tournament as before and had to return to the second-tier European league EuroCup. As a result, the club made changes. Renaldas Seibutis, Omar Cook and Darius Songaila left the team. Also, the team played most of its games in the newly reconstructed Lietuvos rytas Arena instead of

4050-460: The rest of the season. The disastrous season continued for Rytas in the VTB playoffs. After defeating Triumph Lyubertsy 3–0 in the first round, Rytas lost to Nizhny Novgorod 1–3 in the semifinals, losing a chance to play in the 2014–15 EuroLeague season. Rytas finished in third place in the LKL, winning the series against TonyBet Prienai 3–0 and winning the bronze medal. This was the team's worst season since 1998–99. After an unsuccessful LKL season

4131-418: The season, Dražen Anzulović was replaced by the team's former coach Aleksandar Trifunović. With an overall record of 0–4 in their Group C , the team signed a former team member and free agent Šarūnas Jasikevičius . After winning three last EuroLeague group phase games, Rytas qualified for the Top 16 stage in the fourth berth during their last games. On New Year's Eve, Jasikevičius was replaced by Simas Jasaitis,

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4212-455: The second phase of EuroCup, finishing second in their group with three home wins and three away losses. Head coach Antanas Sireika resigned and was replaced by Rimas Kurtinaitis , a former Lietuvos rytas player, for the second half of the season. The team started the second phase of the EuroCup with only two foreign players, Chuck Eidson (a teammate of Petravičius at South Carolina ) and Milko Bjelica. Several Lithuanian basketball players joined

4293-405: The second stage and qualified into the next round by taking second place in the group only after the crucial defeat of Telenet Oostende 111–83 at the last game in Vilnius. Due to the questionable shape of the team, Virginijus Šeškus was fired as head coach. Despite this he remained with Rytas as an assistant to the new head coach Marcelo Nicola . Between 20 and 22 February, Rytas participated in

4374-432: The second tier level European-wide FIBA Saporta Cup in the 1997–98 season , and the first tier level European-wide 1999 FIBA EuroLeague Final Four . From 1994 to 2000, Atletas Kaunas was the only other club that came close to winning the LKL Finals, as they won the first two games of the 5 game 1996 LKL Finals. Lietuvos rytas Vilnius finally ended Žalgiris Kaunas ' run of winning the first 6 LKL Finals, when they won

4455-478: The semifinal series tied at 1–1. Rytas won 96–89 two days later in Vilnius. A crucial game in Klaipėda began well; the team had a 29-point lead at one time. Neptūnas almost tied the game at the end but Rytas won by five points and eliminated Neptūnas 3–1, qualifying for the LKL Finals after a one-year break. The team began the LKL finals with a 73–66 loss to Žalgiris Kaunas. Antanas Kavaliauskas scored 17 points in

4536-415: The semifinals. Rytas finished third after a 71–62 win against Spartak St. Petersburg . The team finished third in the regular season round of the VTB United League and qualified for the eighth final. They defeated Nizhny Novgorod and advanced to the quarterfinals where they met Khimki. Khimki were the reigning EuroCup and VTB League champions and were considered heavy favorites but Rytas unexpectedly won

4617-450: The series 2–1. The Final Four tournament was organized at Siemens Arena. After a tense semifinal, Lietuvos rytas lost to CSKA Moscow 79–72, but went on to win third place against Lokomotiv-Kuban 91–83. Despite two third places in international competitions, Rytas lost the LKL final series to Žalgiris Kaunas, with Žalgiris winning 3–0. This was the worst domestic season in the team's history; Rytas lost all six of its matches (five in LKL and

4698-556: The series was tied at 1–1. The third game was played in Vilnius. However it was unsuccessful for the home team. Despite having multiple leads, Rytas lost 73–71 to Žalgiris Kaunas and did not qualify to the LKL Finals for the second time in club history; Žalgiris won the series 2–1. Team captain Steponas Babrauskas described it as a "tragedy". Moreover, one of team leaders Renaldas Seibutis injured his eye after contact with Vytenis Lipkevičius and required surgery causing him to miss

4779-604: The split between the FIBA and ULEB, Rytas played in the FIBA SuproLeague , making it to the quarterfinals, but losing to Anadolu Efes S.K. The team won third place in the NEBL . In the LKL finals, Žalgiris Kaunas defeated Lietuvos rytas in a tough five-game series 3–2. In 2002, Lietuvos rytas won the LKL again, this time in a seven-game final series with the last game decided in overtime. The team played without center Robertas Javtokas, who

4860-469: The team played its best match of the season—a 103–92 win over Beşiktaş J.K in Istanbul. A few days later, despite their improved play, Rytas lost 82–68 to Žalgiris Kaunas in the Siemens Arena. The team's poor form was quickly recalled when Rytas lost another EuroCup home game, this time to Szolnoki Olaj 99–98. Rytas then lost to Avtodor Saratov 109–92, leaving minimal hope it would qualify for the Last-32 stage in

4941-462: The team was known as Lietuvos rytas Marijampolė and played in the second-tier Lithuanian league, the LKAL . A notable player for the team was teenager Darius Songaila . However, after the 1996–97 season the partnership ended. At the same time, Statyba was faced with financial difficulties and was on the verge of bankruptcy. The team needed new investors and in 1997 Lietuvos rytas bought the club. However,

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5022-520: The team's new head coach. The team finished the year with a three straight victories. Art%C5%ABras Gudaitis Artūras Gudaitis (born 19 June 1993) is a Lithuanian professional basketball player for Alvark Tokyo of the Japanese B.League . Standing at 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in), he plays at the center position. He was selected by the Philadelphia 76ers with the 47th overall pick in

5103-476: The team's roster, and Rytas successfully advanced to the Final 8. Chuck Eidson was named the regular season MVP. The Final 8 began with a victory against Benetton Treviso in the quarterfinal on 2 April 2009. Two days later the team won its semifinal against Hemofarm Vršac and made its third consecutive appearance in the EuroCup finals. Mindaugas Lukauskis has made a decisive three-pointer which allowed him to become

5184-554: The third and fourth quarters. Rytas became the first team to reclaim the EuroCup title; Marijonas Petravičius was selected the Final 8 MVP. Lietuvos rytas was also successful in matches against arch rival Žalgiris Kaunas. It won the 2009 LKF Cup , with Mindaugas Lukauskis scoring the game-winning three pointer with 2 seconds left. Lietuvois rytas also won the Baltic Basketball League final game on 25 April 2009 over Žalgiris Kaunas, 97–74. Chuck Eidson scored 41 points, and he

5265-420: The ticket prices and the move to the 2,500-seat arena during the primary games were a failure and said that the club was seeking to fill vacant positions in the near future. The club started playing many of their games at the Siemens Arena following an agreement with the arena. The deal with the arena owners is in place until 2020. Despite all of Rytas' efforts and Euroleague Basketball Company promises to LKL,

5346-468: Was brought into the main Žalgiris roster. Whilst suffering from the knee injury in the first half of the season he had his breakthrough game against Lokomotiv Kuban Krasnodar in the EuroLeague tournament, scoring 14 points with 6 rebounds. Gudaitis vastly improved during the regular season, and was called an x-factor of victorious LKL semi-final series against Lietuvos rytas Vilnius . During 2014–15 LKL season his powerful dunk over Artūras Jomantas

5427-623: Was coached by Šarūnas Sakalauskas . It was the first time in the history of the Lithuanian Basketball League that Žalgiris Kaunas did not win the LKL title. Also, Rytas reached the Saporta Cup semifinal, where they met last season's EuroLeague runner-up Kinder . After a home win of 70–60, Lietuvos rytas lost in Italy 83–71, with Šiškauskas missing a three-pointer which would have won the two-game series for his team. The next season, due to

5508-466: Was eliminated from that year's EuroLeague. After winning the Baltic Basketball League title, Lietuvos rytas defeated Žalgiris Kaunas 4–0. Despite winning the Lithuanian title, Lietuvos rytas did not acquire the country's spot for 2006–07 EuroLeague that was reserved for Žalgiris Kaunas. Although the coach and three leading players Robertas Javtokas, Simas Jasaitis and Fred House had left the team during

5589-422: Was held in Vilnius. This time, Rytas, led by Renaldas Seibutis and Martynas Gecevičius, was successful—it won three games in a row (against VEF Rīga , EWE Oldenburg and Telenet Oostende ), and qualified for the EuroLeague. To strengthen the team roster before the EuroLeague games, Lietuvos rytas signed former NBA and Lithuania national team player Darius Songaila . On 18 October 2013, Lietuvos rytas started

5670-468: Was named to the LKL All-Tournament Team on 13 June 2017. On 12 September 2017, Gudaitis signed with Olimpia Milano . On 25 February 2018, Gudaitis extended his contract that would keep him with the team until the end of the 2020–21 season. On 1 February 2019, during an away game against Herbalife Gran Canaria , Gudaitis suffered an ACL injury that left him sidelined for the remainder of

5751-514: Was officially released from the Greek powerhouse. On 21 July 2023, Gudaitis signed a one-year deal with Alvark Tokyo of the Japanese B.League . On July 30, 2024, he re-signed with Alvark Tokyo. On 26 February 2015 Gudaitis announced that he was going to participate in the 2015 NBA draft and prior to the NBA draft, it was reported that 11 teams were interested in his services. On 25 June 2015, Gudaitis

5832-411: Was recently drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers , by paying to buyout his contract. Rokas Giedraitis also signed four-year deal with the club. Furthermore, one of the Šiauliai leaders Julius Jucikas replaced Artūras Valeika. Seven Lietuvos rytas players were invited to the Lithuania men's national basketball team training camp. Argentina national basketball team member Nicolás Laprovíttola became

5913-416: Was rejected by the majority of the LKL clubs. Rytas began the LKL playoffs defeating Šiauliai 3–0 in the series (97–69, 107–96 and 96–92), despite the efforts Rokas Giedraitis who was signed with Lietuvos rytas the following season. The LKL semifinals were more difficult for the team who defeated Neptūnas only during the game's final minutes 88–79. They later lost 107–101 in Klaipėda after overtime and

5994-467: Was replaced by Dainius Adomaitis . Despite two victories against Rytas' biggest rival Žalgiris Kaunas during the regular season, the LKL playoffs were a disaster for Lietuvos rytas. Due to a rare situation in LKL standings, Rytas and Žalgiris Kaunas met in the semifinals and not in the finals for the second time since 1998. Darius Songaila's 28 points led Rytas to a first series victory in Vilnius with 90–85 result. Rytas lost to Žalgiris in Kaunas 72–57 and

6075-403: Was replaced by Tomo Mahorič . Tyrone Nesby , Roberts Štelmahers and Robertas Javtokas, Simas Jasaitis and Tomas Delininkaitis led the team to victory in the 2005 ULEB Cup , beating Pamesa Valencia in the semifinals and Makedonikos in the final. This victory granted them a place in the EuroLeague, the continent's primary basketball club tournament. Lietuvos rytas won second place in both

6156-603: Was selected as the Top Play of the Regular Season. On 2 July 2015, he signed a 2+1 contract with Lietuvos rytas Vilnius . On 9 November 2016, Gudaitis scored a career-high 17 points and got 11 rebounds in a 101–84 win over Montakit Fuenlabrada in EuroCup Basketball game. One week later, on 16 November 2016, Gudaitis scored 12 points and got a career-high 15 rebounds. After an individually successful 2016–17 season, he

6237-402: Was selected in the second round, with the 47th pick by the Philadelphia 76ers . On 10 July 2015, the Sacramento Kings acquired Gudaitis and Luka Mitrović from the Philadelphia 76ers in exchange for Carl Landry , Jason Thompson , and Nik Stauskas . It was reported that Vlade Divac himself requested to acquire Gudaitis. On 5 July 2016, it was announced that Gudaitis would represent

6318-562: Was seriously injured in a motorbike crash. Lietuvos rytas also won the NEBL title in 2002, becoming the last team to win the tournament. The team held first place in the group stage of the Saporta Cup but lost in the quarterfinals to Hapoel Jerusalem . Over the next two seasons, Lietuvos rytas lost in the LKL finals to Žalgiris Kaunas. They had more success in Europe, though, finishing in second place in

6399-464: Was the MVP for the season. It was the third BBL title for the club. Lietuvos rytas won a trophy for winning the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL) during this season as well. Having qualified in the finals, Lietuvos rytas had a match against Žalgiris Kaunas during the finals and won the series 4–1, with the final match taking place on 18 May. This was the fourth time Lietuvos rytas became the LKL champion, and it

6480-475: Was the fifth trophy of the season for the team. After the season, team leaders Marijonas Petravičius, Mindaugas Lukauskis and Chuck Eidson left and Lietuvos rytas acquired new prospective players to replace them. The team began their 2009–10 season with a loss to their rival Žalgiris Kaunas 83–78 in the BBL Cup finals. Lietuvos rytas also participated in the 2009 Gomelsky Cup , where the team claimed third place after

6561-491: Was the team's best regular season performance ever, and the best by a Lithuanian team in Euroleague at the time. However, the team was not as successful in the Top 16 and with record of 2–4 did not advance to the playoffs. Lietuvos rytas were the runner-up in the Lithuanian Basketball League, the Baltic Basketball League and the Lithuanian Cup, losing each time to Žalgiris Kaunas. During The 2008–09 season, Lietuvos rytas had

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