Evolution has seen over 150 of its athletes reach the college level since 2003
Alex Harris sat down with B.J. Koubaroulis in the PrepZone studio to discuss the history and growth of Evolution Basketball Training. (Video by Nick Plum for Synthesis/Koubaroulis LLC / The Washington Post)
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October 15, 2015, 8:15 p.m. — After coming home from a one-year stint in Ireland chasing his dream of playing basketball professionally, Alex Harris had an idea for a private training company. As a young guy in 2003, just three years removed from his college graduation and living under his parent’s roof, he launched his enterprise.
Now, 12 years later, Evolution Basketball Training has become a mainstay and has seen over 150 of its athletes go on to play college ball, and some have even followed in Harris’ footsteps by going on to play professionally.
“I just started with outdoor courts and any kind of gym I could get into,” Harris said, “but I had a couple fortunate situations and I was able to get into a warehouse and build a client base, and after a few years really started to get pretty busy.”
Evolution (@evobball) now has two Northern Virginia locations, one in Ashburn and another in Merrifield. However, they are currently under construction of a new site in Fairfax that will replace Merrifield.
Harris began his journey as a player at Gonzaga College High School before going on to play at American University, where he was named to the CAA All-Rookie Team, and finished at LeMoyne College in 2000. He subsequently played in the IBA Professional League in Dublin, Ireland, before moving back home to pursue coaching. He spent just two years as a coach at St. John’s Prospect Hall before finding his true calling.
The development of the company was aided by Harris’ business partner and co-founder, Mandy Ronay. Like Harris, Ronay (@evobball_mandy) had a successful playing career before moving on to coaching. She starred at West Virginia as a player and then coached for five years at William & Mary and Syracuse.
“I had the desire to open my own business, so when I had that opportunity I took it,” Ronay said. “I wasn’t sure which direction we were going to go, but I was getting a little bit sick of the recruiting travel and never being home.”
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According to Ronay, her and Harris have a great working relationship with a brother-sister-type bond. With their ability to work together to go along with their extensive playing and coaching backgrounds, they are able to effectively guide their young protégés.
“We have a lot of life experience to lean on,” Harris said. “Where we’ve been is where all these kids are achieving to go. It helps us relate to them and to help navigate them how to get there.”
Evolution Basketball essentially covers every aspect of hoops training except for team competition, as they do not participate in the AAU circuit. They do, however, provide all things training, player development, and strength and conditioning for boys and girls through private or small groups, clinics and camps.
Evolution is currently in the midst of Preseason Prep, which Harris identified as the biggest program of the year. The fall is an important time for the athletes who are getting into shape for the upcoming season.
“For the kids getting ready to go into their winter season, this is the time when you got to get them ready, so we’re jam-packed and working seven days a week,” Harris said.
The team at Evolution has certainly been successful in terms of player development. With the company now over a decade old, they have seen players who started with them in elementary school, who have now progressed all the way through to college ball and beyond.
The high school class of 2015 alone had 23 players go on to play at the university level.
“Having had the success of 150 players come through our program and go on to play college ball is really cool,” Harris said. “To us, it just shows that what we’re doing works.”
Some Evolution products that have achieved success and stick out in Harris’ mind include John Manning (St. Louis), John Schoof (American), Daniel Noe (Navy), Aaron Young (Princeton) and Kelly Koshuta (Virginia Tech).
Schoof is currently playing professionally in Spain and works as a trainer for Evolution when he is back home.
“The game of basketball has provided me a lot of opportunities in my life,” Schoof said, “including a free college education and the opportunity to play professionally. None of it would be possible without Evolution.”
Harris says one of his favorite memories with the company was Young’s first workout as a fifth-grader. Immediately after the hour-long session, Young asked if he could go for two hours next time. Now he is on the Princeton roster after graduating from Virginia Episcopal in 2014.
“Evolution Basketball and the people part of it have defined my career,” Young said. “From the age of 11, it has been one of the single most consistent things in my life besides the game itself.”
According to Young, Harris is almost a father figure for him, having been such a significant part of his life for so many years.
“Alex Harris has probably been the most influential male figure in my life from the time I was 11 years old and on,” Young said. “I was raised by a single mother and have had various coaches that have come and gone with the seasons. My relationship with Alex has been something constant in my life regardless of which team or school I’ve been at, and he has been a major part of every big decision I’ve made.”
Although Harris, Ronay and the rest of the staff find validation and joy in seeing their prospects like Schoof and Young succeed in college, they equally value all achievements from their young athletes.
“The basis of it all is not about getting to college,” he said, “the basis of it all is learning to set and achieve your goals, and learning to move up to the next level, whatever that level may be. Even if it’s a kid moving from house league to travel, we get just as excited about that.”
Harris credits his staff for the growth of the company through the years. There are 12 total employees at Evolution, including Harris and Ronay, and all but one had connections prior to joining the team. Several of the trainers were high school teammates of Harris or Ronay, while others were students of Evolution who have returned as trainers.
“That’s pretty special when a kid can go through our program, learn our system as a player, go through college, and then be able to come back as a trainer and work with the next wave of kids that come through, and be that influential figure,” Harris said.
Ronay similarly values the team atmosphere surrounding the Evolution staff, stemming from her playing background.
“I love that we built a team, Alex and I, that works so well together and has been so successful,” Ronay said.
The trainers at Evolution understand the importance of being a leader and role model for the athletes.
Harris, for example, had the opportunity to play for a legendary coach in Dick Myers while at Gonzaga. He thanks Myers, along with assistant coach Bill Whitaker, for inspiring him to pursue his basketball dreams and for shaping his character as a young man.
“We first care about the kids and we care about what’s best for them,” Harris said. “Having a staff that is extremely experienced in the game and also caring people is what is the absolute difference maker.”
For Harris, the best part of the job is putting in the countless hours of work behind the scenes with the player in the pre-season, and then quietly showing up to games during the winter and watching from the stands without their knowledge.
“I can be there to celebrate after a big game or be the shoulder to cry on if need be,” Harris said.
There is no more perfect name than Evolution for a company that started on a small scale and has blossomed into something special, defined by its team-oriented nature and its compassionate staff.
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