LKL Finals
The Lietuvos krepšinio lyga (LKL) Finals is the championship finals series for the top-tier level professional club basketball league in Lithuania, the LKL, and the conclusion of the league's postseason. The Finals have been played in either a best-of-seven, or a best-of five format. The first LKL Finals series was held in 1994, and was contested by Žalgiris and Atletas, with Žalgiris winning the series 3–1.
| LKL Finals | |
|---|---|
| Status | Active |
| Genre | Sporting event |
| Date(s) | June |
| Frequency | Annual |
| Country | Lithuania |
| Inaugurated | 1994 |
| Lithuanian Basketball League awards |
|---|
| Team award |
|
| Individual awards |
Žalgiris Kaunas has been the most successful team, having won 19 out of the 24 LKL Finals series that have been played so far. Lietuvos rytas Vilnius is the only other team to win the LKL Finals.
History
1994–2000: Early dominance by Žalgiris Kaunas
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 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.
2000–2010: Lietuvos rytas Vilnius and Žalgiris rivalry
Lietuvos rytas Vilnius finally ended Žalgiris Kaunas' run of winning the first 6 LKL Finals, when they won 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.
2011–present: Žalgiris Kaunas again dominates
Starting with the 2011 LKL Finals, Žalgiris Kaunas began another long run of dominance, winning 9 straight LKL Finals series, from 2011 to 2019.
LKL Finals series results
| Season | Champion | Result | Runner-up |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1994 | Žalgiris | 3–1 | Atletas |
| 1995 | Žalgiris | 3–0 | Atletas |
| 1996 | Žalgiris | 3–2 | Atletas |
| 1997 | Žalgiris | 3–0 | Olimpas |
| 1998 | Žalgiris | 3–1 | Atletas |
| 1999 | Žalgiris | 3–0 | Lietuvos rytas |
| 2000 | Lietuvos rytas | 3–1 | Žalgiris |
| 2001 | Žalgiris | 3–2 | Lietuvos rytas |
| 2002 | Lietuvos rytas | 4–3 | Žalgiris |
| 2003 | Žalgiris | 4–2 | Lietuvos rytas |
| 2004 | Žalgiris | 4–0 | Lietuvos rytas |
| 2005 | Žalgiris | 4–0 | Lietuvos rytas |
| 2006 | Lietuvos rytas | 4–0 | Žalgiris |
| 2007 | Žalgiris | 4–2 | Lietuvos rytas |
| 2008 | Žalgiris | 4–1 | Lietuvos rytas |
| 2009 | Lietuvos rytas | 4–1 | Žalgiris |
| 2010 | Lietuvos rytas | 4–3 | Žalgiris |
| 2011 | Žalgiris | 4–1 | Lietuvos rytas |
| 2012 | Žalgiris | 3–0 | Lietuvos rytas |
| 2013 | Žalgiris | 4–0 | Lietuvos rytas |
| 2014 | Žalgiris | 4–2 | Neptūnas |
| 2015 | Žalgiris | 4–0 | Lietuvos rytas |
| 2016 | Žalgiris | 4–1 | Neptūnas |
| 2017 | Žalgiris | 4–1 | Lietkabelis |
| 2018 | Žalgiris | 4–1 | Lietuvos rytas |
| 2019 | Žalgiris | 3–0 | Rytas |
| 2020 | |||
LKL Finals won by head coach
List of winning head coaches:
- 1994 – Jaak Salumets
- 1995 – Jonas Kazlauskas
- 1996 – Jonas Kazlauskas (2)
- 1997 – Jonas Kazlauskas (3)
- 1998 – Jonas Kazlauskas (4)
- 1999 – Jonas Kazlauskas (5)
- 2000 – Šarūnas Sakalauskas
- 2001 – Algirdas Brazys
- 2002 – Jonas Kazlauskas (6)
- 2003 – Antanas Sireika
- 2004 – Antanas Sireika (2)
- 2005 – Antanas Sireika (3)
- 2006 – Neven Spahija
- 2007 – Rimantas Grigas
- 2008 – Rimantas Grigas (2)
- 2009 – Rimas Kurtinaitis
- 2010 – Rimas Kurtinaitis (2)
- 2011 – Ilias Zouros
- 2012 – Aleksandar Trifunović
- 2013 – Joan Plaza
- 2014 – Gintaras Krapikas
- 2015 – Gintaras Krapikas (2)
- 2016 – Šarūnas Jasikevičius
- 2017 – Šarūnas Jasikevičius (2)
- 2018 – Šarūnas Jasikevičius (3)
- 2019 – Šarūnas Jasikevičius (4)
- 2020 – Finals were not held
LKL Finals Most Valuable Player
| Lithuanian Basketball League awards |
|---|
| Team award |
|
| Individual awards |
The LKL Finals Most Valuable Player Award 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 4 players, Einikis, Arvydas Macijauskas, Tanoka Beard, and Paulius Jankūnas, 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 the award is Edgaras Ulanovas.
LKL Finals MVPs
- Player nationality by national team:
| * | Member of the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame |
| ** | Member of the FIBA Hall of Fame |
| *** | Member of both the Naismith and FIBA Halls of Fame |
 |
Denotes player whose team won championship that year |
| Player (X) | Denotes the number of times the player has received the Finals MVP award |
Multi-time winners
| Player | Team(s) | No. | Years |
|---|---|---|---|
 Gintaras Einikis | Žalgiris Kaunas | 1994, 1995 | |
| Arvydas Macijauskas | Lietuvos rytas Vilnius | 2002, 2003 | |
 Tanoka Beard | Žalgiris Kaunas | 2004, 2007 | |
| Paulius Jankūnas | Žalgiris Kaunas | 2011, 2014 | |
| Edgaras Ulanovas | Žalgiris Kaunas | 2017, 2019 |
By player nationality
| Number | Country |
|---|---|
| Lithuania | |
| United States | |
 Ukraine | |
By club
| Number | Team |
|---|---|
| Žalgiris Kaunas | |
| Lietuvos rytas Vilnius | |
See also
References
- Congratulations Jerome Randle on being named...
- "LKL finalo MVP tapo Edgaras Ulanovas". 24sek.lt. Retrieved 10 June 2017.
- "Sezono uždarymo šventė: LKL titulai byrėjo žalgiriečiams". 15min.lt/24sek. Retrieved 20 June 2018.
- "LKL sezono uždaryme – Š.Jasikevičiaus, E.Ulanovo ir "Žalgirio" triumfas". 15min.lt/24sek. Retrieved 4 June 2019.