launching ticket sales for the upcoming season, the team has sold 1,800 season tickets in less than 24 hours. On 19 July, Rytas signed veteran Mindaugas Lukauskis for his ninth season as a club member. On the following day, Travis Peterson was signed and Kurtinaitis also confirmed that the team had reached an agreement with Chris Kramer. On 22 July, Chris Kramer and Marc Antonio Carter officially joined the team. On 28 July, Mindaugas Brazys joined the coaching staff. On 17 August, notable Lithuanian youth national team member Martynas Echodas was signed to a three-year deal. The newly formed team showed positive results during the preparation games, winning all seven games and the Vladas Garastas Cup. On 23 September, Rytas began the 2017–18 LKL season by defeating Juventus Utena 82–75. On 25 September, Rytas signed experienced veteran Loukas Mavrokefalidis. Due to Artūras Gudaitis' departure to the Olimpia Milano, he was replaced by Egidijus Mockevičius, who signed a three-year deal with the team on 30 September. However, Mockevičius was unable to play due to injury. In the LKL regular season, Rytas played its best season since 2015. Wins over rivals Neptūnas Klaipėda and Lietkabelis Panevėžys helped Rytas reach second place in the standings, behind Žalgiris Kaunas, with whom Rytas tied in the regular season series. In the LKL playoffs, Rytas defeated Juventus Utena 3–0 in the quarterfinals. Having signed Neptūnas leaders Girdžiūnas and Butkevičius, Rytas became the most hated team in Klaipėda, and the rivalry between the two teams intensified. Rytas tied the season series with Neptūnas 2–2 in the regular season, with a win in Klaipėda in April 90–72, the first since the 2016 season. This helped Rytas secure second place in the standings. The two teams faced off in the LKL semifinals. In the first game in Vilnius, Rytas lost to Neptūnas 83–74. In the second game in Klaipėda, Rytas avenged the loss winning 67–49 and tying the series at 1–1. Rytas then won the third game at home, 74–67, to take a 2–1 series lead. In Klaipėda, with a chance to close out the series in the fourth game, Rytas took a 16-point lead in the first quarter. Neptūnas, however, came back and took the lead in the fourth quarter winning the game 74–70, and forcing the deciding match in Vilnius by tying the series 2–2. In the deciding fifth game Rytas defeated Neptūnas 88–82, winning the series