Five hundred jump shots per day. That has been the directive from head coach Tad Boyle toward two of Colorado’s young, sidelined guards as the men’s basketball team takes aim at the back half of the Pac-12 Conference schedule.
Courtney Anderson and RJ Smith are sidelined for much different reasons. Anderson, a 6-foot-5 true freshman out of Vallejo, Calif., is young for his class (Anderson doesn’t turn 19 until August) and is redshirting this season. Smith traveled that same path last year and appeared in the first seven games this season off the bench before suffering a season-ending lower-leg injury.
While the Buffs continue their quest to gain separation in the Pac-12 standings with Saturday’s date at Utah (3 p.m., Pac-12 Network), Anderson and Smith will continue to hone their long-range marksmanship for a program likely to be in need of a few new 3-point shooters next season.
“(Anderson) is coming along. Courtney’s doing some nice things. He’s a good athlete,” Boyle said. “With RJ being out, he’s got an opportunity at practice to really improve. But yeah, Courtney’s going to be a really good player in time.
“I’ve really challenged, he and RJ both; I gave them both the challenge of making 500 jump shots a day. If they both do that, even if they do it six days a week, they’ll be really good players. Because we need guys who are knock-down shooters.”
Unlike Smith, who only recently was cleared for noncontact workouts and shooting drills, Anderson has been a regular participant at practice this season, often anchoring the scout team. Like most freshmen in his situation, Anderson has had to re-focus his energy without looking forward to any game day action.
“I’ve learned a lot. At first I made a lot of mistakes but now I know where to be at and what to do,” Anderson said. “Playing against those guys every day, we have three potential draft picks, you have to get better. It’s definitely not easy, because obviously I want to play. But I try to come every day with a smile knowing I am going to be in the game eventually. I’m trying to prepare for my time on the floor.”
Smith averaged 11.8 minutes off the bench in the first seven games before getting sidelined, but he went 5-for-11 on 3-pointers in his limited chances. With the Buffs set to lose Tristan da Silva and Luke O’Brien to graduation, and Cody Williams a viable candidate for the NBA draft, the 2024-25 team will be in need of long-range shooters.
After Smith and Anderson, the only other guards projected for next year’s roster are Javon Ruffin, who still is trying to regain his top form following a series of knee injuries, along with current juniors Julian Hammond III and KJ Simpson, and that’s only if Simpson returns for his senior season. CU also signed current ThunderRidge standout Andrew Crawford, a 6-foot-6 combo guard.
“RJ’s resilient. It certainly was tough the first couple weeks that reality kind of sunk in,” Boyle said of Smith’s early-season setback. “Since then his attitude’s been good, his effort’s been good. He can do anything with us non-contact. He’s got a chance to be a terrific player for us. I just feel so bad for him this year. Last year he redshirted thinking this is the year I can start contributing. And he was contributing. Both he and Courtney are important to our future plans.”