London Lions given lesson by Portland in historic game for British basketball — SkimNews
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- London Lions became the first British basketball club to face an NBA team, losing 119-66 to the Portland Trail Blazers in a preseason exhibition in Oregon on Monday, with Portland leading for 99% of the contest and stretching their advantage to 57 points.
- Portland shot 56% from the field and made 16 of 34 three-pointers while London managed 30% shooting and went 7-of-33 from beyond the arc, with the Lions committing 24 turnovers that Portland converted into 39 points.
- Maxwell Lewis, London's lone player with prior NBA experience, led the Lions with 13 points, five rebounds, and four steals, while Great Britain international Tarik Phillip missed all eight of his field-goal attempts, scoring three points from the free-throw line.
- London Lions coach Tautvydas Sabonis returned to Portland for the first time in over a decade — his father Arvydas Sabonis spent seven seasons with the Trail Blazers across the 1990s and early 2000s.
- The Lions are reigning Super League Basketball champions with a 5-0 start this season and have submitted a bid to join the EuroLeague as it expands from 20 to 24 clubs by 2027-28, while London and Manchester are discussed as potential franchise cities for the proposed NBA Europe competition.
Why it matters: For Sabonis's Lions, the 53-point loss laid bare the gap between British club basketball and the NBA — but with a EuroLeague bid pending and London being floated as a potential NBA Europe franchise city, the trip was about positioning British basketball for expansion rather than the scoreline.
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