London, Thursday 14 May - London Lions Head Coach Tautvydas Sabonis has been named the SLB Molten Ed Percival Coach of the Year following an outstanding debut season leading the club.
In his first year as a head coach, Sabonis guided the Lions to an exceptional campaign that has already produced a domestic treble, with the team capturing the SLB Cup, SLB Trophy, and regular season title, while still having the opportunity to complete the quadruple in Sunday’s playoff final at The O2 Arena.
Throughout the season, the Lions established themselves as one of the most complete teams in the league, with Sabonis building the team’s identity around discipline, toughness, and defensive intensity. Defense has consistently been the foundation of the Lions’ success under his leadership, as the club set the standard on that end of the floor all season long.
London Lions General Manager Martynas Purlys praised Sabonis’ impact on the organisation throughout the year.
“Congratulations to Coach Tautvydas on a well-deserved Molten Ed Percival Coach of the Year award. In his first season as head coach, he has led the London lions to the SLB Trophy, SLB Cup, and SLB Championship through sheer knowledge, leadership, and dedication. This is an outstanding achievement, of which the London Lions club, the entire organisation and the fans are incredibly proud."
Reflecting on the award, Sabonis credited the people around him for the success of the season.
“To be in my first year as a Head Coach and winning this award, I just want to thank everybody in the London Lions organisation, from the players to the management to the staff. If it wasn’t for all of them then I wouldn’t have won this award, so I am very thankful for everybody that we have in this team…This is great recognition and I’m thankful for it, but we have one job and one game left so we’ve got to go and finish it off.”
Sabonis’ recognition caps off one of the most successful coaching debut seasons in recent SLB history, with the Lions now having one final opportunity on Sunday to complete a historic quadruple and put the finishing touch on a remarkable 2025/26 campaign.
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