It’s been an exciting off-season period for London’s premier basketball club, London Lions, with the leadership team making several moves ahead of the 2025/26 season.
Here’s a full breakdown of player comings and goings from the club with their return to European competition and Super League Basketball action just over a month away.
Player signings
Point guard Amin Adamu has signed for the club following spells in Austria, Czechia and, most recently, Finland. He has represented Great Britain at youth and senior levels, including at the 2023 FIBA World Cup.
Two more British talents have also signed in the form of Tarik Phillip and Mo Soloade. Both are returning for their second spell with the Lions, the former featured for the club from 2022-24, securing back-to-back BBL titles. Soloade, a guard, also joined originally in 2022 and has represented the club in EuroCup previously.
The fourth British signing of the summer is Deane Williams, a 6’8 small forward, with experience in various European leagues including Germany, Italy, Iceland and Poland. Ethan Price is the final British signing off this off-season. Price will reinforce the center position and joins from Washington State where he averaged 13.2 points a game.
For their remaining signings, the Lions looked to the States, signing a quintet of American players. 6’9 center Jonathan Williams III brings NBA experience to the team, having made 39 appearances for the LA Lakers and Washington Wizards before moving abroad with stints in Europe and Asia.
Kameron McGusty arrives from Legia Warsaw in Poland having won the league and finals MVP awards enroute to a PLK championship and finishing as the league’s top scorer.
Point guard Shavar Reynolds Jr. arrives with experience in the Netherlands and Greece, while forward Ryan Mikesell has enjoyed spells in Germany and France in the past five years. Joel Scott makes up the signings from USA having finished college in 2024, he spent last year in Germany but will be suiting up in London Lions kit for the 2025/26 season.
Coaching updates
Tautvydas Sabonis is the new Head Coach of London Lions, replacing the outgoing Petar Božić. He is widely regarded as having huge coaching potential, joining from successful Lithuanian basketball giants Žalgiris Kaunas, where he was Assistant Coach and gained invaluable insight and experience at the highest level of European basketball.
Retained players
The club have also confirmed a number of retained players including their captain, Ovie Soko, and last season’s MVP, Aaryn Rai. Rai won the award based on votes by captains and coaches from across Super League Basketball. Ciaran Sandy and Matthew Goodwin make up the list of players who are staying on from the 24/25 season.
London Lions General Manager, Martynas Purlys, said: “We’re very happy with the moves we’ve made this off-season. With EuroCup back this season, we’ve built a squad that is ready to compete on both the domestic and European stage.”
Early bird season tickets for 2025/26, which includes every home BKT EuroCup fixture, are now available to buy at: https://www.thelondonlions.com/
- Sam Simons
