Let me introduce myself. My name is Dariusz Lewandowski, and I was fortunate enough to have a career as a professional basketball player.

Throughout my journey, I played for clubs in Poland, France, the Czech Republic, and Sweden. I also attended training camps with top European teams like Benetton Treviso, and spent summers practicing with NBA and Euroleague players in the U.S. Unfortunately, my playing career came to an quite early end at 28 (I’m 46 now) due to recurring injuries. Sometimes, no matter how hard we try, some obstacles are just too tough to overcome. But that didn’t stop my passion for the game. Because even though basketball has sometimes beaten me up pretty badly, it has also given me countless moments of joy.

Since finishing my playing career, I’ve stayed connected to basketball — and I’m probably even more passionate about it now, than when I was still on the court. Now, to share my knowledge and experience, I created OrangeBallAcademy.

On a personal note, I live near Rotterdam in the Netherlands with my wonderful wife, two amazing kids, and a dog. I also coach at a local club, BVVoorne. Outside of basketball, I co-manage a construction company and I’m working on building my own clothing (and not only) brand for basketball players—OrangeBallUnitedAthletes