City of Basketball Love

By David Comer
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Chris Harris remembers scrolling through his phone in early April while waiting for an Uber to  take him to the airport for a flight to San Antonio for the Final Four and seeing a Tweet that would change his path in life. 

The post said that George School boys basketball coach Ben Luber had been hired as an assistant coach at Penn and would be leaving the Cougars after a stellar five-year run during which he turned the program into one of the best in the Philadelphia area.

Harris was looking for a job. He and the rest of the staff at Fordham University had just been let go in March after the firing of head coach Keith Urgo. He thought that George School could be a perfect fit for him. Maybe this was the next stop in his coaching life.

“I loved the opportunity,” Harris said. “I knew I had the experience.”

So Harris, who worked with veteran high school and college coach Roy Blumenthal during the one year he spent at Fordham, reached out to Blumenthal to ask him if he had any contacts at George School. Soon, Harris had a phone number and made a few calls. He ultimately applied for the job, had two interviews - one on Zoom and one in person - and was hired May 1.

“It wasn’t a hard process - it was a lengthy process,” Harris said. “Luckily, I have this opportunity. I have the chance to be my own boss again and take on the challenge to run a program.”

Harris, who will turn 35 later this month and spent several years coaching with K-Low Elite as well as time on the staff at Arcadia University, will also serve as an assistant athletic director at George School, a member of the Friends Schools League that also competes in the Pennsylvania Independent Schools Athletic Association. 

“Chris brings a great depth of experience in both coaching and mentorship to George School,” said athletic director Kurt Ruch in a statement. “His experience, skills, and values align beautifully with our vision for the program, and we look forward to welcoming him to campus.”

Last season, the Cougars went 8-0 in league play to capture the regular-season title just two years after winning the 2023 league championship and placing second in the PISAA tournament.

“I have big shoes to fill,” Harris said. “Ben Luber did an outstanding job. I want to keep the momentum going. My plan is to keep what Ben built and build on that momentum. I want to be one of the top independent schools in the country; we don’t want to just be regional. We want to be a school where kids can come and then have the opportunity to play in college - be it at Division I, II or III.”

Harris said that he is assembling his coaching staff. As for his roster, he said that is also a work in progress. Harris confirmed that all-league guard Kasey Fleming will return for his senior season. However, Peyton Miller, a guard with multiple Division I offers, has elected to transfer to Western Reserve Academy in Hudson, Ohio.

“I did everything in my power to keep him,” Harris said.

Harris said he is expecting significant contributions from 7-foot junior-to-be Ziyi Xiong.

“He’s going to be a big piece,” Harris said.

The George School is a boarding and day school located in Newtown, Bucks County. Harris, who is currently living on campus, brings with him experience coaching at similar-type boarding school environments, having spent time at The Woodstock Academy in Woodstock, Conn. and The MacDuffie School in Granby, Mass.

Harris, a point guard during his playing days at Boys and Girls High School in his native Brooklyn and then later at Southern Connecticut State, from which he graduated in 2012, started his coaching journey immediately after his playing career ended. He said he had to complete an internship to graduate and found one with the Hoop Group Pocono Invitational Basketball Camp, where he met future Division I assistants and mentors Justin Scott and Serge Clement.

While coaching for K-Low Elite, an Adidas AAU program based in Philadelphia, Harris lived for a year with Scott and Scott’s stepson, Xzayvier Brown. During that year, Harris said that he worked out regularly with Brown, who would go on to star at Roman Catholic and then Saint Joseph’s. Harris had a front row seat when Brown scored a season-high 27 points against Fordham on March 1.

“I was on the bench for that game,” Harris said. “He was doing stuff I used to work with him on a lot. That made it even worse.”

Both Scott — who was the associate head coach at St. Joe’s — and Brown have moved on to Oklahoma, where Scott will be an assistant coach and Brown a key part of the team. Meanwhile Harris, who spent his year at Fordham as the assistant recruiting coordinator, will return to what he enjoys most - coaching.

“I missed actually being a coach,” Harris said. “I am looking forward to coaching again, impacting kids from a different level and building those relationships.”

He said his time at Fordham was invaluable, albeit short-lived.

“I learned a lot from Keith Urgo,” he said. “He was a godsend - one of the most genuine and nicest people I’ve ever come across. I learned the day-to-day process of how hard you have to work to run a program. It was a great experience. I do not get the George School job without Fordham.”

Another invaluable experience, Harris said, was coaching the K-Low Elite team for three years that featured Division I recruits Devin Booker, KJ Cochran, Jacob Meachem and Kai Shinholster. It was those players who formed the core of the squad that won the 63rd Annual Donofrio Classic in April.

“They made me a better coach,” Harris said. “They played a role in my life they will never understand. I am forever grateful to have coached them for three years.”

Harris also credits Lonnie Lowry, who is the director of K-Low Elite, for giving him a chance.

“He trusted me and gave me an opportunity to coach,” Harris said.

Lowry, who has known Harris for nearly a decade, was equally as complementary to Harris.

“First and foremost, he does a very good job connecting with kids - not only kids he is directly coaching but all of the kids in the program,” Lowry said. “He can connect with any kid. Basketball-wise, his development is top-notch. He does a phenomenal job. I was sad to see him go. I’m glad he’s back in the area.”