Among the lengthy list of shortcomings that led to a 21-loss season, the Colorado men’s basketball team struggled from 3-point range.

The Buffaloes did so pretty much from the start of the season until the bitter end. And the two players who had the most success from long range, guards Julian Hammond III and RJ Smith, have moved on.

It’s a void Ian Inman hopes to fill immediately.

The freshman wing out of Houston is just one player out of a wide array of newcomers hoping to change the Buffaloes’ fortunes. Yet Inman’s ability to assimilate quickly might be as important as it is for any of the Buffs’ six freshmen in terms of checking off an immediate need.

In Inman’s case, his best chance at making a quick impact likely will come from the 3-point arc.

“I feel like I can fill that void and get minutes and show I can do that on the floor,” Inman said. “And if I can, I’ll do it to the best of my ability, for sure.”

Three-point shooting probably wasn’t the biggest problem for a CU team that struggled offensively and led the Big 12 in turnovers. But the Buffs’ errant long-range touch certainly didn’t help.

CU finished with a .321 mark on 3-pointers, the second-lowest percentage in 15 seasons under head coach Tad Boyle. The two most reliable long-range threats last year, Hammond (.375) and Smith (.386), are gone, with Hammond having graduated while Smith transferred to DePaul.

Among the Buffs’ scholarship returnees, Bangot Dak, Sebastian Rancik and Elijah Malone all shot under 29% on 3-pointers, combining for a .266 mark (34-for-128). Felix Kossaras shot .313 in limited opportunities (5-for-16).

CU’s two transfer additions, guards Barrington Hargress and Jon Mani, also aren’t obvious candidates to pick up the 3-point slack. Hargress led the Big West Conference in scoring last year at UC Riverside, but he did most of his damage in the mid-range or by attacking the basket, finishing with a .323 3-point percentage in two seasons at Riverside. Mani shot just .306 (15-for-49) on 3-pointers in 30 games as a freshman last season at Denver.

The Buffs generally have been an above-par shooting team under Boyle — six of the top 11 team 3-point marks in program history, including the top two, have occurred under Boyle’s watch — but regaining that prowess this season will require a breakout season along the arc from an unproven source.

The 6-foot-6 Inman is as strong a candidate as anyone on the roster to be that player.

“Ian, if he gets his feet set and he’s open, he can make shots,” Boyle said. “That’s something I want him to do. I want him to hunt his shots, because he’s a very, very good shooter and a guy I feel comfortable with already, even though he hasn’t played a game yet, because I’ve seen him in practice and workouts. Got to become more consistent and work on other parts of his game. Defense and rebounding is a good way to start.”

This still is a Boyle ball club, and Inman’s 3-point touch will lead to only a limited amount of playing time unless his defense proves equally efficient. As the Buffs begin a four-game exhibition tour in Australia this weekend, Inman said it’s the defensive end of the floor that has dominated his focus this summer.

”Probably the biggest adjustment has been on the defensive end, trying to get through screens, getting bumped a lot,” Inman said. “Getting to the help side, stuff like that. Just making sure I’m better on defense, because that’s how you play in this league.”

Originally Published: July 25, 2025 at 1:48 PM MDT