BC Lietuvos rytas

Lietuvos rytas Vilnius
Nickname	Rytas
Leagues	Lithuanian Basketball League Eurocup
Founded	1997 (as Lietuvos Rytas)
History	Statyba-Lietuvos rytas (1997–1998) Lietuvos Rytas (1998–present)
Arena	Siemens Arena or Lietuvos rytas Arena
Capacity	11,000(Siemens Arena) and 2,500(Lietuvos rytas Arena)
Location	Vilnius, Lithuania
Team colors	Black, White, Red
President	Gedvydas Vainauskas
Team manager	Martynas Purlys
Head coach	Tomas Pačėsas
Championships	2 Eurocup 5 Lithuanian Championships 3 Lithuanian Cup 1 Lithuanian League cup 1 North European League 3 Baltic Championships 1 Baltic Presidents Cup
Website	Official website
Uniforms
Home Away

BC Lietuvos rytas, also known simply as Rytas, is a Lithuanian professional basketball club based in Vilnius, Lithuania. The club, founded in 1997 on the basis of another club, BC Statyba, is one of the most successful Lithuanian basketball clubs. Rytas, among other titles, have won two Eurocup titles, five Lithuanian League titles, three Lithuanian Cups and three Baltic Championships. Lietuvos Rytas plays their home games at 11,000-seat Siemens Arena and 2,500-seat Lietuvos rytas Arena. They also had a daughter club Perlas which was used for the development of young players, but after two seasons in LKL it was dissolved.

Lietuvos Rytas basketball club is connected with the Lietuvos rytas newspaper and owned by newspaper editor Gedvydas Vainauskas who is also the president of the club.

Some of the greatest Lithuanian basketball players have played for Lietuvos Rytas over the years including: 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.

Lietuvos Rytas currently plays in the Eurocup, Lithuanian Basketball League, and LKF Cup

History

The origins (1963–1997)

In 1963 first basketball team from Vilnius, called Žalgiris, was formed. Next year it changed its name to Plastikas. The same year, 1964, Plastikas players joined a new team, called Statyba. This name was used for over 30 years.^[1]

Jonas Kazlauskas, Rimas Girskis, and then head coach Rimantas Endrijaitis led Statyba to a third place in the 1979 Soviet Union Championship.^[2] 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 first LKL season.

In 1995 biggest Lithuanian newspaper Lietuvos rytas started sponsoring Sūduva Marijampolė, a basketball club from Marijampolė, Lithuania. The partnership lasted for two seasons, during which 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 1996–97 season partnership ended.^[3]

At the same time Statyba faced with financial difficulties and was at the verge of bankruptcy. The team needed new investors and in 1997 Lietuvos rytas bought the club. However, new owners didn't want to continue Statyba history and started anew – the team was renamed to Statyba-Lietuvos rytas, then just Lietuvos rytas. The newspaper's investment helped the club to establish itself as one of two best in Lithuania, the other being BC Žalgiris from the country's second-largest city Kaunas.

First successes (1997–2004)

Lithuanian star Šarūnas Jasikevičius started his career in Lietuvos Rytas.

Alfredas Vainauskas, coach of the team 1997–2001.

Lietuvos Rytas was one of the first professional clubs for Robertas Javtokas.

During its first season, Lietuvos Rytas managed to repeat Statyba's biggest achievement in LKL and won bronze. Next season was even better - Rytas won LKL silver, losing only to reigning Euroleague's champions BC Žalgiris. Team also took second place in 1997 William Jones Cup.

However, the biggest success at that time came in 2000, when Vilnius' side, led by the so-called "big three" — Ramūnas Šiškauskas, Andrius Giedraitis and Eric Elliott, also combined with youngsters Arvydas Macijauskas and Robertas Javtokas, managed to win LKL. The team was coached by Šarūnas Sakalauskas. It was the first time in the history of the Lithuanian Basketball League when Žalgiris did not win the LKL title. Also, Rytas reached the Saporta Cup semifinal, where they met last season Euroleague runner-up Kinder. After an upsetting home win 70–60, Lietuvos rytas lost in Italy 71–83, with Šiškauskas missing a three-pointer which would've won the two-game series for his team.

The next season, due to the split between the FIBA and ULEB, Rytas played in the FIBA Suproleague, making to the, but losing in quarterfinals to Anadolu Efes S.K.. The team won third place in the NEBL, a step down from the previous seasons second place. In the LKL finals, Žalgiris defeated Lietuvos rytas in tough five game series 3:2.

In 2002 Lietuvos rytas repeated their triumph, this time in a dramatic seven-game final series with the last game decided in overtime. The team played without center Robertas Javtokas, who was seriously injured in a motorbike crash.^[4] Lietuvos rytas also won the NEBL title in 2002, becoming the last team winning the tournament. The team held first place in the group stage of the Saporta Cup, but lost in the quarter-finals to Hapoel Jerusalem B.C..

Over the next two seasons, Lietuvos rytas lost both times in the LKL finals to Žalgiris. They had more success in Europe, though, finishing in second place in the FIBA Eurocup regional stage (though losing to KK Hemofarm in the final stage). The team also succsefully debuted in the ULEB Cup, making to the quarterfinals, but losing to Hapoel Jerusalem B.C..

Foreign coaches era (2004–2008)

Lietuvos Rytas and Siemens arenas, opened 2004

Neven Spahija, coach for the 2005-06 season

Kareem Rush, leader for the second half of 2006-07 season

The Lietuvos Rytas' lineup in 2007

Rimas Kurtinaitis

2004–05 - ULEB Cup Champions

After not winning any title in the past two seasons Lietuvos Rytas decided that change was needed and started recruiting foreign coaches, first of them being Serbian Vlade Đurović. Midway through the season, team leader Frederick House suffered a season-ending injury,^[5] head coach Đurović resigned and was replaced by Slovenian Tomo Mahorič. Despite this, newcomer Tyrone Nesby, Latvian playmaker Roberts Štelmahers and an inspirational Lithuanian trio: Robertas Javtokas, Simas Jasaitis and Tomas Delininkaitis led the team to the victory of 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 the LKL and BBL finals.

2005–06 - Euroleague debut

Before the 2005–06 season, Croatian specialist Neven Spahija became the head coach of the team. Lietuvos rytas started the 2005–06 Euroleague season well. After losing their first two matches, Rytas matched the Euroleague record by winning seven consecutive Euroleague fixtures, defeating such teams as Winterthur FCB, champions Maccabi (twice) and Efes Pilsen. Those wins allowed Rytas to advance to Top 16 phase, where they won three times out of six, beating Tau Ceramica once and Brose Baskets twice. However, that was not enough and Lietuvos rytas was eliminated from that year's Euroleague.

After winning the Baltic Basketball League title, Lietuvos rytas won their easiest finals series, crushing Žalgiris 4–0. Despite winning the Lithuanian title, Lietuvos rytas did not acquire the country's spot for 2006–07 that was reserved to the archrival Žalgiris.

2006–07 - ULEB Cup Finalists

Although the coach and three leading players: Robertas Javtokas, Simas Jasaitis and Fred House had left the team during the interseason, the 2006–07 ULEB Cup season was rather successful for Lietuvos rytas as well, despite that two coaches were replaced during the season: Sharon Drucker from Israel was replaced by Slovenian Zmago Sagadin and the latter to his assistant coach Aleksandar Trifunović from Serbia. The roster was strengthened during the season when promising NBA player Kareem Rush arrived to lead the team to the ULEB Cup final where Lietuvos rytas was defeated by Real Madrid. However, Real Madrid's victory at the ACB semifinals and of one of four spots reserved for Spain allowed Lietuvos rytas to take part in the Euroleague 2007–08 season 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 won them both.

2007–08 - Back to Euroleague

Lietuvos Rytas was very successful in the regular season of 2007–08 Euroleague, beating teams like Unicaja Málaga or Armani Jeans Milano. Very notable victories were achieved against future Euroleague finalists of that season, Maccabi Tel Aviv. 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. The fourth victory in a row over Maccabi (away, by 5 points) was due to spectacular performances by Hollis Price (19 points) and Chuck Eidson (28 points).

A road victory against Cibona Zagreb on 31 January 2008 completed the Euroleague regular season for Lietuvos rytas and allowed them to remain at 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 was the team's best regular-season performance ever, and the best by a Lithuanian team in Euroleague at the time. However, the team wasn't as successful in the Top 16 and with record of 2–4 did not advance to playoffs.

Lietuvos rytas were the runner-up at all: the Lithuanian Basketball League, the Baltic Basketball League and the Lithuanian Cup, losing each time to Žalgiris.

Rimas Kurtinaitis era (2008–2010)

LKL trophy in Vilnius

Chuck Eidson, the leader of the team for the 2008–09 season

The 2008–2009 season was met by the team with a significantly reduced budget, putting a greater emphasis on young and perspective local players. Nevertheless, Lietuvos rytas managed to win the first Baltic Basketball Presidents Cup. On 21 October 2008, Lietuvos Rytas had a first chance ever to play against NBA basketball club Golden State Warriors at Oracle Arena. Lietuvos Rytas lost that game with result 106:126.^[6]

However, as many other Baltic professional sports clubs, Lietuvos rytas had to face the blow of financial crisis in late 2008 and early 2009. Having lost two of its foreign leaders ^[7] Lietuvos rytas still managed to reach 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 a former Lietuvos rytas' player Rimas Kurtinaitis for the second half of the season. The team has started second phase of the Eurocup with only two foreign players, Chuck Eidson (a teammate of Petravičius at South Carolina) and Milko Bjelica on its roster which had been refreshed with promising Lithuanians. However, that was enough and Rytas successfully advanced to Final 8. Chuck Eidson was named the regular season MVP.

The Final 8 started with a victory against Benetton Treviso in quarterfinal on 2 April 2009. Two days later the team won semifinal against Hemofarm Vršac and made the third consecutive appearance in the ULEB Eurocup finals. Mindaugas Lukauskis has made a decisive three-pointer and that allowed him to become the only player to participate in the final three times in total and, later, the only two-times ULEB Cup champion. Going into finals, Rytas was considered underdog against rich Russian team BC Khimki. However, terrific performances of Steponas Babrauskas (18 points) and Marijonas Petravičius (20 points) allowed the team to overcome the odds and win the final. Lietuvos rytas made an outstanding 15:0 run, having left their rivals empty for 6 straight minutes in the third and fourth quarters. Rytas became the first team to reclaim the Eurocup title, while Marijonas Petravičius became the Final 8 MVP.

Lietuvos rytas was very successful in matches against archrival Žalgiris too. Firstly, it won the 2009 LKF Cup, with Mindaugas Lukauskis scoring the game-winning three pointer with 2 seconds left.^[8] Next was the Baltic Basketball League final game - it was won by Lietuvos rytas on 25 April 2009 over Žalgiris, 97 to 74. Chuck Eidson scored 41 points and was announced the MVP.^[9] It was the third BBL title for the club, compared to Žalgiris' two. The final trophy of the season was the Lithuanian Basketball League (LKL). Lietuvos rytas swept past all the teams in the playoffs and qualified to the finals. There Vilnius team confronted their rival Žalgiris Kaunas and won the series 4 to 1, the final match taking place on 18 May. This was the 4th time Lietuvos rytas became the LKL champion. It was the 5th trophy of the season for the team from 5 possible ones.

After the season team leaders Marijonas Petravičius, Mindaugas Lukauskis and Chuck Eidson left the team and Lietuvos rytas acquired new perspective players to replace them. The team began their 2009-2010 season with a dramatic loss to their rivals BC Žalgiris 78 to 83 in BBL Cup finals. Lietuvos rytas also participated in the 2009 Gomelsky Cup, in which the team claimed third place after a near-loss game against Triumph Lyubertsy 94 to 90.

Lietuvos rytas was not successful in Euroleague‍—‌they lost the deciding game against Unicaja Málaga, took the 5th place in Group B and did not advance to the Top 16. However, their fierce battles with BC Žalgiris continued. After winning the LKF Cup by the score of 77:65, Lietuvos rytas, having problems with players injuries,^[10] suffered a loss in the BBL Finals to their rivals from Kaunas, 66 to 73. However, Lietuvos rytas took revenge and won the LKL trophy, beating Žalgiris after a thrilling series 4–3. It was the second consecutive LKL title of Vilnius' team. After the conclusion of the season, head coach Rimas Kurtinaitis left the club to be replaced by Croatian Dražen Anzulović.

Big dreams, small achievements (2010–2014)

2010–11 - Fourth Euroleague season

Martynas Gecevičius was the team leader for the 2010-11 seaso.

The Euroleague 2010–2011 season was the fourth one for Lietuvos rytas. After an unsuccessful start of the season, Dražen Anzulović was replaced by the team's former coach Aleksandar Trifunović. The result being 0-4 in their Group C, the team signed free agent Lithuanian star and a former team member Šarūnas Jasikevičius. After winning 3 of 3 last Euroleague group phase games, Rytas qualified for the Top 16 stage in the fourth berth during their last games. At the New Year's Eve Jasikevičius was replaced by a former member of the team Simas Jasaitis, also a free agent.

The Top 16 phase was the most successful for the team from all its 3 attempts. Playing in the Group E 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 the third place in the group. The 9th place in Euroleague is the highest achievement for Lietuvos Rytas in this tournament in whole club history.

However, the remaining part of the season was unsuccessful for the club as Lietuvos Rytas lost in the semi-final at the Baltic Basketball League and finished only in 3rd place for the first time in club history. The Coach Trifunović was replaced by assistant coach Darius Maskoliūnas. The game improved, but the team ended up losing to Žalgiris in the LKL finals, 4 games to 1.

2011–12 - Euroleague qualification finalists

Renaldas Seibutis became the new team leader in the 2011–12 season

After dismissing Milko Bjelica, Kenan Bajramović, D.J. Strawberry, Cemal Nalga and losing team leader Martynas Gecevičius, Lietuvos Rytas replaced 8 players and opened a new page in club history. The beginning of the season was not very successful as Lietuvos Rytas didn't win Euroleague's qualification tournament which was organized in Vilnius. Lietuvos Rytas won their first two matches against Budućnost and Cibona Zagreb, but lost the final game against Galatasaray with a score of 63:71. Because of that, 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 EuroCup quarterfinal round for the fifth time in a row and defeated BC Donetsk there, but lost to Valencia Basket in the semifinals. Rytas finished third after defeating Spartak 71:62.

Jonas Valančiūnas spent his first seasons in Rytas system

Lietuvos rytas finished 3rd in the regular season round of VTB United League and qualified for the eighth-final. They defeated BC Nizhny Novgorod there and advanced to quarterfinals where they met BC Khimki. Khimki were reigning Eurocup and VTB league champions and they were considered heavy favorites, but, unexpectedly, Rytas won the series 2:1. The Final Four tournament was organized at Siemens Arena. After a tense semifinal Lietuvos Rytas lost to CSKA and went on to win 3rd place against Lokomotiv-Kuban.

Despite two 3rd places in international competitions, Rytas lost the LKL final series to Žalgiris 0:3. This was the worst domestic season in team's history - Rytas lost all 6 of its matches (5 in LKL and 1 in BBL) to its rival. Following the conclusion of the season, Tyrese Rice, Lawrence Roberts, Aleksandar Rašić and Jonas Valančiūnas left the team.

2012–13 - Fifth Euroleague season

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. It started with loss of Lithuanian Supercup to BC Žalgiris. After struggling to find rhythm in the opening months, Lietuvos Rytas released coach Aleksandar Džikić, promoting Maskoliūnas as head coach. Though the game has improved, thanks to the solid play of Leon Radošević, Renaldas Seibutis and Nemanja Nedović, the Euroleague season was finished only 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. However, the rookies didn't help much and Rytas still missed the VTB playoffs, with BC Donetsk defeating Rytas in the deciding game. Coach Maskoliūnas was fired then and replaced with Dirk Bauermann. Rytas started to play much better then, and in April scored a shocking away win over BC Žalgiris (first one in almost 2 years). Rytas made the LKL finals for the 15th time in a row. However, BC Žalgiris easily swept Lietuvos Rytas 4-0 in the final.

2013–14 - Sixth Euroleague season

Rytas became the first club in Lithuania for veteran Darius Songaila

Due to the unsuccessful past season, the manager decided to almost completely rebuild the team: eight players left after the team lost LKL finals to the rival Žalgiris. Former team leader Martynas Gecevičius was recalled after two seasons break and a notable point guard Omar Cook was signed.^[11] 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 was held in Vilnius.

Notable point guard Omar Cook was signed for the 2013–14 season

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.^[12] To strengthen the team roster before Euroleague games, Lietuvos rytas signed former NBA and Lithuania national team player Darius Songaila.^[13] On 18 October 2013, Lietuvos rytas started 13/14 Euroleague season with a tremendous victory against Panathinaikos Athens with the result 84–83^[14] after Renaldas Seibutis winning shot in OT.^[15] The game was named as the Euroleague's Game of the Week and re-broadcast in over 150 countries worldwide.^[16] However, after this, the level of play for the Lithuanian team dropped significantly and Rytas was not able to win any more games. 6 games were lost by 10 points or more and it turned out to be worst Lietuvos rytas season ever in Euroleague. Following the fiasco, coach Dirk Bauermann was replaced by Croat Aleksandar Petrović.^[17] The change helped and on 22 December 2013, Rytas crushed its rival Žalgiris with the result 90–58.^[18] After being eliminated in the Eurocup playoffs by KK Crvena zvezda, Lietuvos rytas also sufered a shocking defeat in the LKF Cup finals, losing to BC Prienai 91:92, leading to the firing of coach Aleksandar Petrović, who was replaced by Dainius Adomaitis.

Juan Palacios was one of the team leaders in the 2013-14 season.

Despite two victories against biggest Rytas rival Žalgiris during regular season, the LKL playoffs were an disaster for Lietuvos rytas. Due to rare situation in LKL standings, Rytas and Žalgiris met in the semi-finals and not in the finals for the second time since 1998. Darius Songaila 28 points led Rytas to first series victory in Vilnius with result 90:85,^[19] however then Rytas lost to Žalgiris in Kaunas with result 57:72 and series tied at 1-1.^[20] Third crucial game was played in Vilnius, however it was not successful for the home team. Despite having 7 points lead multiple times, Rytas lost to Žalgiris with result 71:73 and did not qualified to the LKL Finals for the second time in club history, losing the series 1:2.^[21] Team captain Steponas Babrauskas described it as an tragedy,^[22] moreover one of team leaders Renaldas Seibutis injured his eye after contact with Vytenis Lipkevičius and due to required surgery missed the rest of the season.^[23] The disastrous season continued for Rytas in the VTB playoffs-after defeating BC Triumph in the first round, Rytas lost to BC Nizhny Novgorod in the semifinal round, losing a chance to play in the 2014-2015 Euroleague season. Rytas finished in 3rd place in the LKL, winning the series against BC Prienai 3:0 and winning the bronze medals-this was the team's worst season since the 1998-1999 season.

Seeking for the past glory (2014–present)

2014–15 - Return to Eurocup

After terrible LKL season last year, taking only 3rd place, Rytas lost all chances of qualifying into the Euroleague that year. He was not even invited to the qualifying tournament as before and had to return to the second-tier European league EuroCup. As a result of this, the club changed firmly. Firstly, club biggest stars Renaldas Seibutis, Omar Cook and Darius Songaila left the team. Secondly, the team played most of its games in the newly reconstructed Lietuvos rytas Arena instead of the Siemens Arena. Thirdly, Rytas withdrew from Russian VTB League. Virginijus Šeškus, a former multiple LKL bronze medalist with BC Prienai, was signed as a 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 shortly afterward said that enthusiastic V.Šeškus reminds him former team coach Rimas Kurtinaitis, who has led Rytas to the biggest victories in the club history.^[24] Lithuania national team member Adas Juškevičius and former NBA player Travis Leslie were signed as well.

Lithuania national team member Adas Juškevičius joined Rytas in 2014

On 15 October 2014, Rytas powerfully started the EuroCup season by 92–65 crushing Serbian powerhouse Partizan Belgrade.^[25] They have finished first round with 8-2 record and took first place in the group. On 16 December 2014, team roster was strengthened with addition of Kšyštof Lavrinovič, who has signed two-year deal with Rytas.^[26] Later, on 5 January 2014, another Lithuania national team member Simas Jasaitis also signed with Rytas for the third time in his career.^[27] Lietuvos Rytas started the LAST-32 stage in Eurocup by winning against the best team in Poland, Turów Zgorzelec which was relegated to Eurocup after winning only one game in Euroleague's regular season.^[28] Despite successful start, Rytas lost three games of six in the second stage and qualified into the next round by taking 2nd place in the group only after the crucial smash-up of Telenet Oostende 111–83 at the last game in Vilnius. Due to questionable shape of the team, Virginijus Šeškus was fired as head coach.^[29] Despite fired as head coach, Šeškus stayed in Rytas as an assistant of the new head coach Marcelo Nicola.^[30][31]

On 20–22 February, Rytas participated in 2015 LKF Cup. They defeated Dzūkija 78–63 in the quarter-finals and Šiauliai 71–61 in the semi-finals, however at the finals Rytas lost season's first trophy to principal rival Žalgiris 76–82 and extended trophies drought.^[32]

On 4 March 2015, Lietuvos rytas played first game of the Eurocup playoffs versus Pınar Karşıyaka. Despite having the double-digit lead multiple times, Rytas failed to secure it until the final seconds. The match finished with result 81–81 and the series winner was to be decided in Turkey.^[33] Despite the affirmative thoughts and the mighty moods, on 11 March, Rytas players failed to show any positive signs in the game. The deficit was already shattering after the first two quarters (34–53). The final result was 97–81, ending the two-times Eurocup champion Rytas journey in the international competitions early that year.^[34]

Antanas Kavaliauskas, one of the primary Rytas players in 2014–15

In LKL, Rytas started ambiguously. On 19 October 2014 they suffered first defeat against Žalgiris 82–84 in Vilnius.^[35] Although, they defeated the Euroleague participant BC Neptūnas week later.^[36] On 15 November 2014 during the game against Pieno žvaigždės second defeat happened.^[37] Furthermore, on 28 December 2014, Rytas also suffered defeat to Neptūnas 90–94 in their home arena.^[38] On 1 January 2015 Rytas failed to compete for the victory during the second game against Žalgiris in Kaunas, losing the game 77–91.^[39] Though, on 8 March 2015 Rytas shown solid positive signs under the command of the new head coach. They absolutely crushed Žalgiris in Vilnius with result 93–66 and at times the Rytas lead was even 35 points.^[40] Žalgiris assistant coach Šarūnas Jasikevičius described the game as a "shame". Following the fiasco in Eurocup, on 15 March 2015, Rytas tremendously defeated Neptūnas 87–86 for the second time in Klaipėda after the astonishing Mike Moser shot when there was only 0.6 second remaining, and firmly improved the chances of taking the first spot during the regular LKL season.^[41] On 13 April 2015, Rytas defeated Neptūnas 84–75 for the third time, reaching the 16th straight victory in LKL, and guarantying at least second spot in the regular LKL season.^[42] The winning streak ended on the final day of the regular season, with a tough 81–82 loss to Žalgiris.^[43] With the loss, Rytas entered the playoffs as the second seed team. Though, the game referees decisions left doubtful impressions, which sparked many discussions. Consequently, Rytas requested LKL to hire foreign-born referees during the semi-finals and the grand finals to completely guarantee referees impartiality.^[44] Although, their request was rejected by the majority of the LKL clubs.^[45]

Rytas played LKL finals in their 2500 seats arena for the first time in the club's history.

Rytas began the LKL playoffs by smashing Šiauliai 3–0 in the series (97–69,^[46] 96–107^[47] and 96–92^[48]), in spite of all their militant efforts, especially shown by the upcoming Rytas member Rokas Giedraitis.^[49] The LKL semi-finals began much more difficultly for Lietuvos rytas, overcoming Neptūnas only during the final game minutes 88–79.^[50] Though, they later lost 101–107 in Klaipėda after OT and the semi-final series tied at 1–1.^[51] Rytas successfully reached a revenge 96–89 two days later in Vilnius.^[52] Crucial game in Klaipėda began remarkably positively for Rytas, who once even had 29 points lead. Though, Neptūnas performed their last assault and almost tied the game at the end. Still it wasn't powerful enough assault as Rytas won the game by 5 points and eliminated Neptūnas 3–1, qualifying into the LKL grand-final after one-year break.^[53]

Lietuvos rytas began LKL finals with a close defeat of 66–73 to Žalgiris.^[54] Antanas Kavaliauskas dominated in the first half with total of 17 points, Kšyštof Lavrinovič did the same in the second half with 17 points as well, though 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).^[55] During second game, Rytas suffered desperate defeat 62–78 in Vilnius. All-season team's leaders: Gecevičius, Kavaliauskas and Orelik together scored only 13 points.^[56] Then Žalgiris won two more games: 71–68 after OT and 77–85.^[57][58] Rytas was crushed 0–4 in the finals once again. Despite the victories in the regular season and 2–3 LKL semi-final result last season, their most recent victory versus Žalgiris in the LKL finals was achieved only back in 2011.

2015–16 - Second straight Eurocup season

"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 Euroleague.^[59][60]

On 5 July 2015 Lietuvos rytas president Gedvydas Vainauskas admitted that the tickets prices and the move to the 2500 seats arena during the primary games were failure and said that the club is seeking to return the lost positions in the near future.^[61] Following the agreement with the Siemens Arena, the club once again played their most important games there.^[62] The deal with the arena owners was signed till 2020.^[63] Despite all the Rytas efforts and ULEB promises to LKL, the club did not received a wild card to the tournament and had to play in the second-tier league Eurocup for a second straight season.^[64][65]

Marcelo Nicola remained as the head coach of the team, but was fired in the middle of November due to the shockingly poor results.

Rytas early began signings with the new team members. First of all, all the foreigners left the team: Billy Baron, Mike Moser, Travis Leslie. Though, Marcelo Nicola remained as the head coach of the team, despite the disastrous LKL finals.^[66] Then one of the CSU Asesoft Ploiești leaders Marius Runkauskas replaced Martynas Gecevičius.^[67] Club president later in an interview told that the contract extension with a team leader, who scores only 10 points per 4 final games, is not possible.^[68] Unlike Gecevičius, another Rytas leader Antanas Kavaliauskas signed a new three-years deal.^[69] Rytas also signed with Deividas Gailius, who was Neptūnas team leader and had a solid Euroleague season.^[70] As a result, Simas Jasaitis had to leave the team. Later Rytas surprisingly signed with Artūras Gudaitis by paying buyout, who was a member of the principal opponents Žalgiris, and was recently drafted by the Philadelphia 76ers.^[71] Team roster was also strengthened with one of the most talented young Lithuanian Rokas Giedraitis, who previously signed the four-years deal with the club.^[72] Furthermore, one of the Šiauliai leaders Julius Jucikas replaced Artūras Valeika.^[73] Seven Lietuvos rytas players were invited to the Lithuania men's national basketball team training camp.^[74] Argentina national basketball team member Nicolás Laprovíttola became Rytas roster final piece in the summer of 2015.^[75] On 19 August, first training camp was held.^[76][77][78] On 4 September, Krasta Auto (authorized BMW dealer in Lithuania) became one of the club sponsors, giving 14 brand-new cars for the club members and replacing the former vehicles sponsor Škoda.^[79][80] The agreement was signed for 3 years. On 23 September 2015, Kavaliauskas was chosen captain of the team.^[81]

Rytas positively began the pre-season by winning a friendly tournament in Alytus and then the Vladas Garastas Cup, where they defeated the Euroleague participant BC Khimki in the final 85–84.^[82][83] Rytas also started the LKL in dominating fashion.

Nicolás Laprovíttola was the team's only foreign player in the Eurocup

The returning to the Siemens Arena game, which started the 2015–16 Eurocup season, ended with a vexatious 87–91 defeat to Beşiktaş J.K.^[84] The team then crushed Szolnoki Olaj KK 65–89. After a loss to BC Žalgiris 70:79, the problems began. After shocking losses to BC Avtodor Saratov 81:97 and BC Zenit Saint Petersburg 65:70 at home in the Eurocup, the team was even booed of the court. Rytas also lost to PAOK B.C. 76:81, and rumors started off about conflicts between coach Nicola and the team. Due to the hopeless shape of the team, Marcelo Nicola was fired, with rumors that he will be replaced by Tomas Pačėsas.^[85] Under current coach Aurimas Jasilionis, however, the team played the best match in the season - a thrilling 103–92 win over Beşiktaş J.K in Istanbul. A few days later, despite improved play, Rytas lost to BC Žalgiris again - 68–82 - in the Siemens Arena. The poor form of the team was quickly recalled when Rytas lost another Eurocup home game, this time to the Szolnoki Olaj KK 98–99. Another disastrous performance happened in Saratov - Rytas lost to BC Avtodor Saratov 92:109, with only minimal hope for qualification for the LAST-32 stage in the Eurocup. After the loss, coach Jasilionis was replaced by longtime assistant coach Arvydas Gronskis. After another loss, this time to BC Zenit Saint Petersburg 84–92, Rytas lost all hope to qualify to the LAST-32 stage. In the final game, Rytas lost to PAOK B.C. 81:88 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 the new head coach of the team. The team, under a firm arm of Pačėsas, finished the year with a three straight victories.^[86] On 31 December 2015, Nicolás Laprovíttola left the team.^[87] On 10 January, Julius Jucikas was traded to Dzūkija Alytus for Adam Lapeta.^[88] On 17 January, Rytas achieved the season's first victory versus Žalgiris 78–72.^[89] On 19–21 February, Rytas competed in the newly formed Karaliaus Mindaugo taurė tournament. After defeating Lietkabelis Panevėžys in the quarter-final 88–82, Neptūnas Klaipėda in the semi-final 79–97 and Žalgiris Kaunas in the final 57–67, the team won their first trophy following a five seasons drought.^[90] Antanas Kavaliauskas was named MVP.^[91] On March 29, Rytas signed a three-years contract with the Euroleague Basketball Company and will compete in its organized tournaments.^[92]

De facto BC Lietuvos rytas anthem

	"Laikas būti pirmiems" De facto BC Lietuvos rytas club anthem
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Marijonas Mikutavičius, the creator of de facto Lithuania Olympics Team song – Trys Milijonai, also created a special song to the BC Lietuvos rytas team, following its success in LKL and the very first steps in the prestigious Euroleague. The song is called "Laikas būti pirmiems" (English: Time To Be First) and is widely regarded as the club's anthem. To this day it is still played after the successful club's games or just at the time-outs during the home games.

Players

Current roster

Note: Flags indicate national team eligibility at FIBA sanctioned events. Players may hold other non-FIBA nationality not displayed.

Lietuvos rytas roster
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Nat. Name Ht. Wt. Age PG 2 Brown, Ken 1.80 m (5 ft 11 in) 77 kg (170 lb) 26 – 24 October 1989 G 7 Juškevičius, Adas 1.94 m (6 ft 4 in) 90 kg (198 lb) 27 – 3 January 1989 G/F 8 Lukauskis, Mindaugas 1.98 m (6 ft 6 in) 90 kg (198 lb) 36 – 19 May 1979 PG 9 Pilauskas, Aistis 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) 80 kg (176 lb) 18 – 8 April 1998 C 12 Lavrinovič, Kšyštof 2.09 m (6 ft 10 in) 100 kg (220 lb) 36 – 1 November 1979 SF 13 Gailius, Deividas 2.01 m (6 ft 7 in) 92 kg (203 lb) 28 – 26 April 1988 PF 14 Orelik, Gediminas 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in) 105 kg (231 lb) 25 – 14 May 1990 C 16 Lapeta, Adam 2.17 m (7 ft 1 in) 129 kg (284 lb) 28 – 9 November 1987 PG 17 Lukashov, Denys 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) 82 kg (181 lb) 27 – 30 April 1989 C 21 Kavaliauskas, Antanas (C) 2.09 m (6 ft 10 in) 114 kg (251 lb) 31 – 19 September 1984 SG 22 Runkauskas, Marius 1.88 m (6 ft 2 in) 78 kg (172 lb) 30 – 20 April 1986 F 30 Jomantas, Artūras 2.00 m (6 ft 7 in) 93 kg (205 lb) 31 – 4 May 1985 F/C 33 Gudaitis, Artūras 2.08 m (6 ft 10 in) 115 kg (254 lb) 22 – 19 June 1993	Head coach Tomas Pačėsas Assistant coach(es) Nikola Vasilev Alberto Blanco Athletic trainer(s) Martas Skrabulis Legend (C) Team captain Injured Roster Updated: February 28, 2016

Depth chart

Pos.	Starting 5	Bench 1	Bench 2	Bench 3
C	Adam Lapeta	Artūras Gudaitis
PF	Antanas Kavaliauskas	Kšyštof Lavrinovič
SF	Gediminas Orelik	Deividas Gailius	Artūras Jomantas
SG	Mindaugas Lukauskis	Adas Juškevičius	Marius Runkauskas
PG	Kendrick Brown	Denys Lukashov

Squad changes for/during the 2015/16 season

Note: exact date is listed for players who joined or left during season.

In

Lietuvos Rytas warming-up before the game

Lietuvos Rytas fans during LKL game

Lietuvos Rytas versus Žalgiris in Vilnius

No. Position Player G/F Rokas Giedraitis (from BC Šiauliai) F/C Karolis Guščikas (from Raseinių Rasai) SG Marius Runkauskas (from CSU Asesoft Ploiești) SF Deividas Gailius (from BC Neptūnas) F/C Artūras Gudaitis (from BC Žalgiris) C Julius Jucikas (from BC Šiauliai) PG Nicolas Laprovittola (from Flamengo Basketball) PG Aistis Pilauskas C Adam Lapeta (from BC Dzūkija) PG Kendrick Brown ( from Donar Groningen) PG Denys Lukashov (from BC Avtodor Saratov) SF Arturas Jomantas (from BC Šiauliai)

Out

No. Position Player 1 SG Travis Leslie (to Medi Bayreuth) 3 SF Simas Jasaitis (to Orlandina Basket) 9 PG Billy Baron (to Spirou Charleroi) 13 SG Martynas Gecevičius (to TED Ankara Kolejliler) 43 PF Mike Moser (to Hapoel Holon) Marcelo Nicola 23 SG Edvinas Šeškus (to Vytautas Prienai-Birštonas) 15 C Augustinas Jankaitis (BK Jelgava) 10 PG Nicolás Laprovíttola (to CB Estudiantes)

Out on loan

No. Position Player 10 C Karolis Guščikas (to BC Siauliai) 11 PF Artūras Valeika (to BC Lietkabelis) 4 PG Paulius Dambrauskas (to BC Siauliai) 27 C Julius Jucikas (to BC Dzūkija) 31 SG Rokas Giedraitis (to BC Siauliai) 19 PG Žygimantas Janavičius (to BC Lietkabelis)

Honours

Total titles: 14

The 2010 Lietuvos Krepšinio Lyga champions trophy in Vilnius.

Domestic competitions

• Lithuanian Championship
  • Winners (5): 2000, 2002, 2006, 2009, 2010
• Lithuanian Cup
  • Winners (3): 1998, 2009, 2010

European competitions

• ULEB Eurocup
  • Winners (2): 2005, 2009
  • Runners-up (1): 2007
• Small Triple Crown (unofficial)
  • Winners (1): 2009

Regional competitions

• North European Basketball League
  • Winners (1): 2002
  • Runners-up (1): 2000
• Baltic Basketball League
  • Winners (3): 2006, 2007, 2009

Preseason competitions

• 1 BBL Presidents Cup: 2008

Season by season

Season	LKL	LKF Cup KMT Cup	Regional Competitions	Europe	Roster For more detailed information see Former Lietuvos rytas rosters	Head Coach
1997–98	3rd place	Champion	–	Korać Cup Top 32	Marius Janišius, Arnas Kazlauskas, Egidijus Mikalajūnas, Aurimas Palšis, Martynas Purlys, Virginijus Sirvydis, Rolandas Skaisgirys, Gintaras Stulga, Andrius Šakalys, Andrius Šležas, Rolandas Vaičiūnas	Paulauskas, Vainauskas
1998–99	Finalist	–	NEBL 3rd place	Saporta Cup Top 32	Darius Dimavičius, Andrius Giedraitis, Šarūnas Jasikevičius, Arnas Kazlauskas, Kęstutis Kemzūra, Rimas Kurtinaitis, Egidijus Mikalajūnas, Makhtar N'Diaye, Aurimas Palšis, Martynas Purlys, Roman Safronov, Virginijus Sirvydis, Ramūnas Šiškauskas, Singaras Tribė, Andrius Vyšniauskas	Vainauskas, Sakalauskas
1999–00	Champion	–	NEBL Finalist	Saporta Cup Semifinalist	Giedrius Aidietis, Mantas Česnauskis, Valerij Četovič, Eric Elliot, Andrius Giedraitis, Rolandas Jarutis, Robertas Javtokas, Gintaras Kadžiulis, Arnas Kazlauskas, Arvydas Macijauskas, Oleksandr Okunsky, Mlađan Šilobad, Ramūnas Šiškauskas, Andrius Šležas, Andrius Vyšniauskas	Vainauskas, Sakalauskas
2000–01	Finalist	–	NEBL 3rd place	Suproleague Top 16	Valerij Četovič, Eric Elliot, Andrius Giedraitis, Greg Grant, Rolandas Jarutis, Artūras Javtokas, Robertas Javtokas, Gintaras Kadžiulis, Arnas Kazlauskas, Arvydas Macijauskas, Ramūnas Šiškauskas, Kęstutis Šeštokas, Andrius Šležas	Sakalauskas, Vainauskas
2001–02	Champion	–	NEBL Champion	Saporta Cup Quarterfinalist	Vedran Bosnić, Mantas Česnauskis, Simas Jasaitis, Artūras Javtokas, Robertas Javtokas, Walsh Jordan, Rimantas Kaukėnas, Aivaras Kiaušas, Arvydas Macijauskas, Kęstutis Marčiulionis, Kęstutis Šeštokas, Ramūnas Šiškauskas, Andrius Šležas, Andrius Vyšniauskas	Vainauskas, Kazlauskas
2002–03	Finalist	–	NEBL Finalist	Champions Cup Group stage	Povilas Čukinas, Tomas Delininkaitis, Simas Jasaitis, Artūras Javtokas, Aaron Lucas, Aivaras Kiaušas, Vladimir Krstić, Arvydas Macijauskas, Oleksandr Okunsky, Kęstutis Šeštokas, Ramūnas Šiškauskas, Andrius Šležas, Steve Woodberry	Kazlauskas
2003–04	Finalist	–	–	ULEB Cup Quarterfinalist	Steponas Babrauskas, Povilas Čukinas, Tomas Delininkaitis, Miljan Goljović, Simas Jasaitis, Robertas Javtokas, Saulius Kuzminskas, Aaron Lucas, Mindaugas Lukauskis, Dickey Simpkins, Ramūnas Šiškauskas, Andrius Šležas	Kazlauskas, Kemzūra
2004–05	Finalist	–	BBL Elite Division Finalist	ULEB Cup Champion	Povilas Čukinas, Tomas Delininkaitis, Gintaras Einikis, Fred House, Rolandas Jarutis, Simas Jasaitis, Robertas Javtokas, Saulius Kuzminskas, Aaron Lucas, Mindaugas Lukauskis, Haris Mujezinović, Tyrone Nesby, Kęstutis Šeštokas, Andrius Šležas, Roberts Štelmahers	Đurović, Mahorič
2005–06	Champion	–	BBL Elite Division Champion	Euroleague Top 16	Steponas Babrauskas, Maurice Baker, Sandis Buškevics, Povilas Čukinas, Tomas Delininkaitis, Ernestas Ežerskis, Fred House, Simas Jasaitis, Robertas Javtokas, Mindaugas Lukauskis, Haris Mujezinović, Matthew Nielsen, Ivan Tomas, Andrius Šležas, Roberts Štelmahers	Spahija
2006–07	Finalist	Finalist	BBL Elite Division Champion	ULEB Cup Finalist	J. P. Batista, Jānis Blūms, Tomas Delininkaitis, Andre Emmett, Martynas Gecevičius, Titus Ivory, Artūras Jomantas, Evaldas Kairys, Ivan Koljević, Mindaugas Lukauskis, Matthew Nielsen, Darius Pakamanis, Marijonas Petravičius, Kareem Rush, Andrius Šležas, Roberts Štelmahers, Eurelijus Žukauskas	Drucker, Sagadin, Trifunović
2007–08	Finalist	Finalist	BBL Elite Division Finalist	Euroleague Top 16	Michailas Anisimovas, Kenan Bajramović, J. P. Batista, Lukas Brazdauskis, Simas Buterlevičius, Chuck Eidson, Martynas Gecevičius, Artūras Jomantas, Jared Jordan, Mindaugas Lukauskis, Darrel Mitchell, Matthew Nielsen, Marijonas Petravičius, Hollis Price, Jackson Vroman, Andrius Šležas, Roberts Štelmahers	Trifunović
2008–09	Champion	Champion	BBL Elite Division Champion	Eurocup Champion	Michailas Anisimovas, Steponas Babrauskas, Milko Bjelica, Lukas Brazdauskis, Simas Buterlevičius, Evaldas Dainys, Chuck Eidson, Martynas Gecevičius, Artūras Jomantas, Mindaugas Lukauskis, Branko Milisavljević, Matthew Nielsen, Marijonas Petravičius, Marius Prekevičius, Justas Sinica, Tautvydas Šležas, Donatas Zavackas	Sireika, Kurtinaitis
2009–10	Champion	Champion	BBL Elite Division Finalist	Euroleague Group stage	Steponas Babrauskas, Kenan Bajramović, Aron Baynes, Milko Bjelica, Dejan Borovnjak, Lukas Brazdauskis, Simas Buterlevičius, Evaldas Dainys, Martynas Gecevičius, Vidas Ginevičius, Artūras Jomantas, Igor Milošević, Bojan Popović, Justas Sinica, Jonas Valančiūnas, Donatas Zavackas	Kurtinaitis
2010–11	Finalist	Finalist	BBL Elite Division 3rd place	Euroleague Top 16	Steponas Babrauskas, Kenan Bajramović, Petras Baločka, Milko Bjelica, Simas Buterlevičius, Khalid El-Amin, Martynas Gecevičius, Simas Jasaitis, Šarūnas Jasikevičius, Jerry Johnson, Artūras Jomantas, Žydrūnas Kelys, Igor Milošević, Cemal Nalga, Brad Newley, Karolis Petrukonis, Aleksandar Rašić, D. J. Strawberry, Arvydas Šikšnius, Jonas Valančiūnas	Anzulović, Trifunović, Maskoliūnas
			VTB Group Stage
2011–12	Finalist	–	BBL Elite Division Finalist	Euroleague qualifying Finalist	Steponas Babrauskas, Paulius Dambrauskas, Vilmantas Dilys, Goran Jeretin, Artūras Jomantas, Mindaugas Katelynas, Brad Newley, Aleksandar Rašić, Dovydas Redikas, Tyrese Rice, Lawrence Roberts, Predrag Samardžiski, Renaldas Seibutis, Jonas Valančiūnas	Džikić
			VTB 3rd place	Eurocup 3rd place
2012–13	Finalist	–	VTB Group Stage	Euroleague Group Stage	Steponas Babrauskas, Eimantas Bendžius, Jānis Blūms, Simas Buterlevičius, Vilmantas Dilys, Deividas Dulkys, Dejan Ivanov, Artūras Jomantas, Mindaugas Katelynas, Tautvydas Lydeka, Nemanja Nedović, Patrick O'Bryant, Milt Palacio, Leon Radošević, Dovydas Redikas, Predrag Samardžiski, Renaldas Seibutis, Tomislav Zubčić	Džikić, Maskoliūnas, Bauermann
2013–14	3rd Place	Finalist	VTB Semi-finals	Qualified For Euroleague	Steponas Babrauskas, Eimantas Bendžius, Omar Cook, Paulius Dambrauskas, Zabian Dowdell, Deividas Dulkys, Martynas Gecevičius, Andreas Glyniadakis, Stevan Jelovac, Antanas Kavaliauskas, Tautvydas Lydeka, Gediminas Orelik, Juan Palacios, Dovydas Redikas, Renaldas Seibutis, Darius Songaila, Edvinas Šeškus, Milenko Tepić	Bauermann, Petrović, Adomaitis
				Euroleague Group Stage
				Eurocup Eighth-finals
2014–15	Finalist	Finalist	–	Eurocup Eighth-finals	Travis Leslie, Simas Jasaitis, Adas Juškevičius, Mindaugas Lukauskis, Billy Baron, Artūras Valeika, Kšyštof Lavrinovič, Martynas Gecevičius, Gediminas Orelikas, Žygimantas Janavičius, Antanas Kavaliauskas, Mike Moser	Šeškus, Nicola
2015–16	ongoing	Champion	–	Eurocup Group Stage	Adam Lapeta, Antanas Kavaliauskas, Gediminas Orelik, Mindaugas Lukauskis, Kendrick Brown, Artūras Gudaitis, Kšyštof Lavrinovič, Deividas Gailius, Adas Juškevičius, Denys Lukashov, Artūras Jomantas, Marius Runkauskas	Nicola, Jasilionis, Gronskis, Pacesas

Team records in LKL

Rytas game in early 2006

Rytas game in late 2008

Statistic	Record	Opponent	Result	Date	Venue
Points	134	Alytus	134:76	26 October 2008	Lietuvos rytas Arena
Rebounds	54	Aukštaitija	52:98	11 October 2003
Assists	37	Prienai TonyBet	102:65	11 June 2014	Siemens Arena
Steals	^25	Nevėžis	92:40	11 October 2009	Lietuvos rytas Arena
Blocks	9	Olimpas	81:91	30 October 1997
2-pointers made	43	Sakalai	112:67	9 March 2008	Lietuvos rytas Arena
2-pointers %	^86.67 %	Neptūnas	132:80	14 February 2003
3-pointers made	19	Juventus	108:61	19 April 2010	Lietuvos rytas Arena
3-pointers %	78.57%	Sakalai	73:91	17 September 1999
Free throws made	37	Alita	110:102	5 March 1998
Free throws %	^100 %	Prienai	59:84	8 February 2015	Prienai Arena

Last updated: 2015-05-20.^[93]

Important people and venues

Captains Dates Name 1997–1998 Virginijus Sirvydis 1998–? ? ?–2003 Andrius Šležas 2003–2006 Robertas Javtokas 2006–2008 Andrius Šležas 2008–2014 Steponas Babrauskas 2014–2015 Martynas Gecevičius 2015–present Antanas Kavaliauskas

Managers Dates Name 1997–2001 Algimantas Ližaitis 2001–2010 Jonas Vainauskas 2010– Martynas Purlys

Presidents Dates Name 1997– Gedvydas Vainauskas

Steponas Babrauskas was a long-term Lietuvos rytas captain.

Venues

Seasons used	Venue	Capacity	Notes
1997–1998	Ekinsta Sports Hall	1,000
1998–2004	Lietuvos rytas Sports Arena (Olimpiečių street)	2,000 3,500	At first capacity of 2000, later expanded to 3500.
2004–present	Siemens Arena	11,000	Used for all Euroleague/Eurocup/VTB games and some LKL games
2004–present	Lietuvos rytas Arena	1,700 2,500	At first capacity of 1700, later expanded to 2500 Used for most LKL games and practices.

Notable players

In Statyba

Dainius Adomaitis 1993–1996 Romanas Brazdauskis 1983-1984, 1986–1988 Rimas Girskis 1968–1983 Artūras Karnišovas 1987–1990

Jonas Kazlauskas 1973–1985 Linas Kvedaravičius 1985–1990 Algimantas Ližaitis 1964–1971 Šarūnas Marčiulionis 1982–1988 Algimantas Pavilonis 1973–1985

Alvydas Pazdrazdis 1989–1992 Gintaras Pocius 1981–1983, 1985–1990 Martynas Purlys 1993–1995 Alfredas Vainauskas 1979–1990, 1993–1995

In Lietuvos rytas

To appear in this section a player must be either:

• A player who has played at least 3 seasons (if foreign player) or 4 seasons (if Lithuanian player) for the club.
• A player who has won individual award.
• A Lithuanian player who has played for the Lithuanian national basketball team.
• A foreign international player who had significant impact (was a leader) in the club.

Lithuania: Steponas Babrauskas 2003-2004, 2008-2014 Simas Buterlevičius 2007–2011, 2012-2013 Povilas Čukinas 2002–2006 Tomas Delininkaitis 2002–2007 Darius Dimavičius 1998-1999 Deividas Dulkys 2012-2013 Gintaras Einikis 2004-2005 Martynas Gecevičius 2007–2011, 2013–2015 Andrius Giedraitis 1998–2001 Vidas Ginevičius 2009-2010 Simas Jasaitis 2001–2006, 2011, 2015 Šarūnas Jasikevičius 1998-1999, 2010 Robertas Javtokas 1999–2006 Artūras Jomantas 2006–2013, 2016–present Rimantas Kaukėnas 2001-2002 Antanas Kavaliauskas 2014–present Arnas Kazlauskas 1997–2001 Rimas Kurtinaitis 1998-1999 Mindaugas Lukauskis 2003–2009 Arvydas Macijauskas 1999–2003 Kęstutis Marčiulionis 2001-2002 Marijonas Petravičius 2006–2009

Lithuania (cont.): Marius Prekevičius 2008-2009 Renaldas Seibutis 2011-2014 Darius Songaila 2013–2014 Kęstutis Šeštokas 2000–2003, 2004-2005 Ramūnas Šiškauskas 1998–2004 Andrius Šležas 1997-1998, 1999–2008 Jonas Valančiūnas 2010–2012 Eurelijus Žukauskas 2006-2007 Kšyštof Lavrinovič 2014–present Artūras Gudaitis 2015–present USA: Omar Cook 2013–2014 Chuck Eidson 2007–2009 Khalid El-Amin 2010-2011 Eric Elliot 1999–2001 Fred House 2004–2006 Aaron Lucas 2002–2004, 2005 Tyrone Nesby 2004-2005 Hollis Price 2007-2008 Tyrese Rice 2011-2012 Lawrence Roberts 2011-2012 Kareem Rush 2006-2007

Australia: Brad Newley 2010-2012 Aron Baynes 2009-2010 Matthew Nielsen 2005-2008 Argentina: Nicolás Laprovíttola 2015 Bosnia and Herzegovina: Kenan Bajramović 2007-2008, 2010-2011 Haris Mujezinović 2004–2006 Colombia: Juan Palacios 2013–2014 Latvia: Roberts Štelmahers 2004–2008 Jānis Blūms 2006-2007, 2012-2013 Montenegro: Milko Bjelica 2008–2011 Serbia: Nemanja Nedović 2012-2013 Bojan Popović 2009-2010 Stevan Jelovac 2013-2014 Milenko Tepić 2013 Ukraine: Oleksandr Okunskyy 1999-2000, 2002-2003

Notable coaches

The following head coaches won at least one major trophy when in charge of Rytas:

Name	Period	Trophies
Alfredas Vainauskas	1997–2001	LKF Cup
Šarūnas Sakalauskas	1998–2001	Lithuanian Basketball League
Jonas Kazlauskas	2001–2004	Lithuanian Basketball League, North European Basketball League
Tomo Mahorić	2005	ULEB Cup
Neven Spahija	2005–2006	Lithuanian Basketball League, Baltic Basketball League
Aleksandar Trifunović	2007–2008 2010–2011	Baltic Basketball League
Rimas Kurtinaitis	2008–2010	2 Lithuanian Basketball Leagues, 2 LKF Cups, Baltic Basketball League, ULEB Eurocup

Individual awards

Euroleague

Euroleague MVP of the Week Season Week Player PIR Opponent 2005–06 6 Haris Mujezinović 36 Maccabi Tel Aviv B.C. 2007–08 2 Artūras Jomantas 29 Maccabi Tel Aviv B.C. 2010–11 12 Khalid El-Amin 29 Caja Laboral Euroleague MVP of the Month Season Month Player 2009–10 October Bojan Popović

50 Greatest Euroleague Contributors Chosen: Šarūnas Jasikevičius Nominated: Artūras Karnišovas (Statyba) Rimas Kurtinaitis Euroleague Basketball 2001–10 All-Decade Team Šarūnas Jasikevičius Ramūnas Šiškauskas Euroleague Assists leaders Omar Cook currently is Euroleague's all-time leader in average assists per game.

Eurocup

Eurocup MVP of the Week Season Week Player PIR Opponent 2003–04 13 Robertas Javtokas 24 Hapoel Jerusalem B.C. 2003–04 14 Robertas Javtokas 35 Hapoel Jerusalem B.C. 2004–05 6 Fred House 50 Śląsk Wrocław 2008–09 9 Chuck Eidson 37 Artland Dragons Eurocup Performance Index Rating Leaders Chuck Eidson 21.27 (in 15 games) (2008–09) Best Eurocup Coach of All Time Rimas Kurtinaitis [94]

Eurocup Basketball Awards Season Player Award 2004–05 Robertas Javtokas ULEB Cup Finals MVP 2008–09 Chuck Eidson Eurocup MVP 2008–09 Chuck Eidson All-Eurocup First Team 2008–09 Marijonas Petravičius Eurocup Finals MVP 2011–12 Renaldas Seibutis All-Eurocup First Team 2011–12 Jonas Valančiūnas All-Eurocup First Team 2011–12 Jonas Valančiūnas Eurocup Rising Star

Lithuanian Basketball League LKL Finals MVP Arvydas Macijauskas (2002, 2003) Andrius Šležas (2006) Chuck Eidson (2009) Martynas Gecevičius (2010) Slam Dunk Contest Champions Robertas Javtokas (2000, 2001) Aaron Lucas (2003) Aron Baynes (2010) Travis Leslie (2015) Three-point Shootout Champions Arvydas Macijauskas (2000, 2002, 2003)

Baltic Basketball League Final Four MVP Kareem Rush (2007) Chuck Eidson (2009) NEBL Finals MVP Arvydas Macijauskas (2002) FIBA FIBA's 50 Greatest Players (1991) Šarūnas Marčiulionis (Statyba) FIBA Europe Young Men's Player of the Year Award Jonas Valančiūnas (2011, 2012)

Matches against NBA teams

21 October 2008

Boxscore

Golden State Warriors

126–106

Lietuvos rytas Vilnius

Oracle Arena, Oakland, CA

Sponsorships and partners

As of January 2014:

Lietuvos rytas Vilnius city municipality Švyturys Pieno žvaigždės (Svalia) Radiocentras Lithuanian Railways Omnitel

Inter RAO Lithuania Krasta Auto (partner of BMW in Lithuania) Adidas Geonafta (part of Lotos Group) Lietuvos draudimas (part of RSA Insurance Group) DOJUS agro (partner of Deere & Company) TP Engineering (owned by Tony G) TonyBet (owned by Tony G)

Norfa ARVI Ozas Akropolis Audimas Olifėja LitCon Norvelita

Video game

Lietuvos rytas basketball club was featured in the NBA 2K15 video game.^[95]

References

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2. Lietuvos rytas Euroleague page, euroleague.net, accessed 31 December 2010. (English)
3. Jonas Vainauskas about beginnings of Lietuvos rytas, krepsinis.net (Lithuanian)
4. Javtokas injured, delfi.lt (Lithuanian)
5. Fred House about his injury, eurocupbasketball.com, (English)
6. Lietuvos Rytas - Golden State Warriors game at Oracle Arena, ESPN (English)
7. Nielsen leaves Lietuvos Rytas, basketnews.lt (Lithuanian)
8. Lukauskis three-pointer won the cup for Rytas, basketnews.lt (Lithuanian)
9. Lietuvos Rytas wins 2009 BBL, lrytas.lt (Lithuanian)
10. Lietuvos Rytas has problems with players injuries, sportas.info (Lithuanian)
11. Lietuvos Rytas adds floor general Cook, euroleague.net (English)
12. 2013 Turkish Airlines Euroleague Qualifying Rounds, euroleague.net (English)
13. LIETUVOS RYTAS adds veteran forward Songaila, Euroleague.net (English)
14. Lietuvos Rytas Vilnius vs. Panathinaikos Athens, Euroleague.net (English)
15. Play of the Night: Renaldas Seibutis, Lietuvos Rytas (video) (English)
16. Euroleague named Lietuvos rytas and Panathinaikos game as the game of the week, lrytas.lt (Lithuanian)
17. Lietuvos Rytas hires Petrović, basketnews.lt (Lithuanian)
18. Lietuvos Rytas beats Žalgiris, delfi.lt (Lithuanian)
19. D.Songailos šou priartino „Lietuvos rytą“ prie LKL finalo (Lithuanian)
20. „Žalgiris“ atstatė lygybę LKL pusfinalyje (5 video, foto, komentarai, statistika) (Lithuanian)
21. Po įspūdingos kovos „Žalgiris“ žengė į LKL finalą (6 video, foto, komentarai, statistika) (Lithuanian)
22. Babrauskas: „Tai yra tragedija“ (Lithuanian)
23. Seibučiui sezonas veikiausiai baigtas – jo laukia akies operacija (Lithuanian)
24. Virginijus Šeškus tapo biudžetą mažinančio „Lietuvos ryto“ treneriu (Lithuanian)
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26. Kšištofas jau Vilniuje: „Man patinka Šeškaus stilius – greitas krepšinis“ (foto) (Lithuanian)
27. Jasaitis papildė „Lietuvos ryto“ komandą (Lithuanian)
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29. Net ir po svarbios pergalės V. Šeškus neišsaugojo darbo „Lietuvos ryto“ klube (Lithuanian)
30. Šeškų „Lietuvos ryte“ pakeis Motiejūną treniravęs argentinietis (Lithuanian)
31. V.Šeškus lieka „Lietuvos ryto" trenerių štabe (Lithuanian)
32. „Žalgiris“ susigrąžino LKF taurę (2 video, foto, komentarai, statistika) (Lithuanian)
33. „Lietuvos rytui“ aštuntfinalyje su turkais nepavyko įgyti nė taško persvaros (Lithuanian)
34. „Lietuvos rytas“ sudegė Izmiro pragare (statistika) (Lithuanian)
35. Lietuvos rytas - Žalgiris (2014-10-19) (Lithuanian)
36. Neptūnas - Lietuvos rytas (2014-10-26) (Lithuanian)
37. Lietuvos rytas - Pieno žvaigždės (2014-11-15) (Lithuanian)
38. Lietuvos rytas - Neptūnas (2014-12-28) (Lithuanian)
39. Žalgiris - Lietuvos rytas (2015-01-12) (Lithuanian)
40. Puikiai krepšį atakavęs „Lietuvos rytas“ nepaliko vilčių „Žalgiriui“ (foto, komentaras, statistika) (Lithuanian)
41. Įspūdingo trilerio pabaigoje Moserio dvitaškis parklupdė „Neptūną“ (2 video, foto, komentarai, statistika) (Lithuanian)
42. Pasipriešinimo iš „Neptūno“ mačo pabaigoje sulaukęs „Lietuvos rytas“ laimėjo 16-ą kartą paeiliui (video, foto, komentarai, statistika) (Lithuanian)
43. Andersono dvitaškis dramatiškai padovanojo „Žalgiriui“ reguliariojo sezono nugalėtojų vardą (4 video, foto, komentarai, statistika) (Lithuanian)
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51. "LKL pusfinalyje "Neptūnas" įveikė "Lietuvos rytą" ir išlygino serijos rezultatą". Delfi.lt. Retrieved 18 May 2015.
52. "LKL pusfinalio kare "Lietuvos rytas" prieš "Neptūną" laimėjo antrą mūšį". Delfi.lt. Retrieved 20 May 2015.
53. "29 taškų persvarą išbarstęs "Lietuvos rytas" vos atsilaikė Klaipėdoje". Delfi.lt. Retrieved 23 May 2015.
54. "Kovoje dėl kamuolių dominavęs "Žalgiris" įveikė "Lietuvos rytą" (3 video, foto, komentarai, statistika)". BasketNews.lt. Retrieved 28 May 2015.
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58. "Nenugalimieji: Kauno "Žalgiris" penktus metus iš eilės triumfavo LKL čempionate". Delfi.lt. Retrieved 6 June 2015.
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63. ""Lietuvos rytas" pasirašė ilgalaikę sutartį su "Siemens" arena". BasketNews.lt. Retrieved 6 August 2015.
64. "Milašius nusivylęs Eurolyga: "LKL buvo žadėtas vardinis kvietimas"". BasketNews.lt. Retrieved 7 May 2015.
65. ""Lietuvos rytas" Eurolygos malonės nesulaukė". Krepsinis.net. Retrieved 29 June 2015.
66. "M. Nicola lieka prie "Lietuvos ryto" vairo". lrytas.lt. Retrieved 15 June 2015.
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71. "Staigmena: Artūras Gudaitis keliasi į Vilniaus "Lietuvos rytą"". 24sek.lt. Retrieved 2 July 2015.
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74. "J. Kazlausko sprendimas: paaiškėjo, kurie krepšininkai ruošis Europos čempionatui". Delfi.lt. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
75. Suslavičius, Martynas. "M. Nicola apie naują įžaidėją: "Turėtų tapti vienu iš lyderių"". lrytas.lt. Retrieved 1 August 2015.
76. Augustis, Mindaugas. "Antrą sezoną "Lietuvos ryte" pradedantis M. Nicola: dabar situacija man – daug palankesnė". Delfi.lt. Retrieved 19 August 2015.
77. Bagdonas, Marius. "Pasirengimą pradėjusio "Lietuvos ryto" treneris Marcelo Nicola: "Šį sezoną mūsų tikslas – laimėti"". 24sek.lt. Retrieved 19 August 2015.
78. Pulkovskis, Edgaras. "K.Lavrinovičius paaiškino, kodėl Darjušas atmetė "Žalgirio" pasiūlymą". Krepsinis.net. Retrieved 19 August 2015.
79. Sarapas, Jaunius. "Į BMW persėdę "Lietuvos ryto" žaidėjai ieškos auksinio kelio". Delfi.lt. Retrieved 4 September 2015.
80. ""Lietuvos ryto" krepšininkams - nauji BMW automobiliai". YouTube.com. Retrieved 4 September 2015.
81. "Vilniaus "Lietuvos rytas" turi naują kapitoną". 24sek.lt. Retrieved 23 September 2015.
82. ""Neptūną" patiesęs "Lietuvos rytas" laimėjo turnyrą Alytuje". lrytas.lt. Retrieved 30 September 2015.
83. "Nepralaiminčiam Vilniaus "Lietuvos rytui" – V. Garasto taurė". lrytas.lt. Retrieved 29 September 2015.
84. "Liūdnas sugrįžimas į "Siemens" areną: mačo pradžią pramiegojęs "Lietuvos rytas" krito prieš "Bešiktaš"". 24sek.lt. Retrieved 14 October 2015.
85. Pulkovskis, Edgaras. ""Lietuvos rytas" atleido M.Nicolą, jį pakeis T.Pačėsas". Krepsinis.net. Retrieved 16 November 2015.
86. Butkauskas, Laurynas. "T. Pačėso taisyklės: kaip auklėjama komanda". Krepšinis.lt. Retrieved 28 December 2015.
87. "Legionierius palieka "Lietuvos rytą", ieškoma naujo krepšininko". lrytas.lt. Retrieved 31 December 2015.
88. "Po žaidėjų mainų "Lietuvos ryte" – aukštaūgis legionierius". lrytas.lt. Retrieved 10 January 2016.
89. "T. Pačėso įkvėptas "Lietuvos rytas" nutraukė pralaimėjimų seriją "Žalgiriui"". Krepsinis.lt. Retrieved 17 January 2016.
90. "„Žalgirį“ gynyboje sukaustęs „Lietuvos rytas“ nutraukė titulų badą". Krepsinis.lt. Retrieved 23 February 2016.
91. "Finalo MVP epizodai: kaip A. Kavaliauskas baudė „Žalgirį“". Delfi.lt. Retrieved 23 February 2016.
92. "„Lietuvos ryto“ klubo sprendimas: galimos sankcijos neišgąsdino". lrytas.lt. Retrieved 29 March 2016.
93. "Komandų statistika". LKL.lt. Retrieved 20 May 2015.
94. Rimas Kurtinaitis chosen as best Eurocup coach of all time, eurocupbasketball.com (English)
95. „NBA 2K15“ žaidime – „Žalgiris“, „Lietuvos rytas“ ir daugybė lietuvių (Lithuanian)

External links

• Official website (Lithuanian) (English)
• BC Lietuvos rytas at Euroleague.net (English)
• BC Lietuvos rytas at LKL.lt (Lithuanian)
• BC Lietuvos rytas at VTB-League.com (English) (Russian)
• Lietuvos rytas players stats (1997-2008) (Lithuanian)