About Thomas Roijakkers

Coaching with purpose
I am a professional basketball coach with almost three decades of experience at the highest level across 7 countries in Europe and Asia, working as both a head coach and an assistant coach. My experience has taught me how to build teams, develop players and adapt to different basketball cultures and club environments.

I knew early in my life that coaching was what I wanted to do. After growing up in Deurne, the Netherlands, and completing my sports education at CIOS, I began coaching at the age of 20. Since 2001, I have worked as a professional coach, both as a head coach and assistant coach, at clubs in the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, Austria, Taiwan, Indonesia and India.

What motivates me most is building teams and developing people. For me, creating a sustainable team culture, player development and building relationships are tools for building winning teams.

An international perspective
Working in different countries has had a major influence on me as a coach. Every country has its own culture, ambitions and challenges. I have learned to adapt, communicate and build relationships while staying true to the principles I believe in.

More than coaching
In 2003, I founded T.R. Basketball Clinics, through which I have organised clinics for players and schools. 
Since 2016 I am a clinician for the VTS (Flemish Trainer School) in Belgium and have conducted clinics in Spain, Germany, Belgium, the U.S.A., Japan, the Netherlands and Austria.
In 2020, I founded and organised the European Basketball Webinar out of a desire to share knowledge, bringing together more than 7,000 participants over six days. Coaches from the NBA, EuroLeague, ACB and national teams shared their knowledge, while the event also raised close to €3,000 for Doctors Without Borders.

These experiences reflect an important part of my coaching philosophy: I believe in sharing knowledge and building connections. A club becomes stronger when its players, coaches and staff continue to learn from one another and from the wider basketball world.

What I bring to a club
With three decades of coaching, including at the highest level, I have the experience to built teams from the ground up and to take over teams during the season. My focus is on creating clarity, accountability and trust, while developing players and building teams capable of competing consistently.

I fit best in an ambitious environment where people are willing to work together, and where building something sustainable matters.
I want to contribute beyond the game itself: to develop players, support staff, build relationships across the club and help create an environment in which people and performance can grow together.