Brian McCormick's Hard2Guard Player Development Newsletter, Volume 9

2023 was the ninth year of Brian McCormick’s Hard2Guard Player Development Newsletter with one issue published and sent to thousands of coaches and other subscribers each week. Topics ranged from differences between basketball development in Europe compared to the United States, the sociocultural impact on skill development, learning from video games, thoughts on pregame warmups, and more.

The newsletters provide as many questions as answers, encouraging readers to think more deeply about the game and their coaching. How much feedback is appropriate? Should coaches listen to their players? Do players need individual skills trainers? Rarely is there a definitive answer, but contemplating these and other questions leads to more informed, better coaching.

McCormick started the year coaching a professional women’s basketball team in the Czech Republic and ended 2023 coaching boy’s high-school basketball in Boston. His experiences inform his writing, which also was influenced heavily by the 2023 FIBA World Championships and the debut of Victor Wembanyama.