though no actions were taken by the team until after the series. The three players, along with Drew Gordon, were subsequently suspended for the rest of the season. All of them were denying the violations but incontestable pictures were published. In Panevėžys, Rytas lost 86–77 and lost the series 1–3. This fiasco meant that Rytas did not qualify for the LKL finals for the second time in a row—the first time in the team's history this had happened. In the bronze medal series, Rytas faced Neptūnas Klaipėda, who were now considered the favorite due to Rytas' internal problems. Rytas started the series with a 79–60 win in Vilnius. After losing in Klaipėda 83–70, Rytas won the third game in Vilnius 71–54, again taking a series lead. The last two games were very close. Led by Chris Lofton, Neptūnas tied the series in Klaipėda at 2–2 with a 70–65 win, leading to a decisive Game five in the next few days. Led by Gailius and Baron, former Neptūnas players, Rytas won the game 74–66 and the series 3–2, ending the season with a more positive note and avenging their 2016 loss to Neptūnas. The season ended with an international scandal for the team, however, as club president Gedvydas Vainauskas made a controversial statement about black players on the team who behaved unprofessionally (saying no more than two players should play on the team and that more are like a gang), drawing negative attention to the team from around the world. New owners' era (2017–present) On 19 June 2017, famous poker player, businessman and European Parliament member Antanas Guoga bought fifty percent of the club from Sigitas Židonis and Remigijus Kazilionis. Two remaining stake owners Darius Gudelis and Vilnius City Municipality retained their rights to the club (twenty-five percent each). On 20 June Gedvydas Vainauskas resigned as president of Rytas a position he held since the founding of the club in 1997, just a week after receiving an award from LKL president Remigijus Milašius for his contributions to basketball. Shortly after becoming the new owner of the club, Guoga sparked discussions about changing the club's name and invited the public to offer their ideas since the team no longer had connections with the Vainauskas' newspaper Lietuvos rytas. The idea was sharply criticised by the club's elite fans, group B Tribūna (Rytas Ultras), who said the only team they would support is black-white-red