The entire summer will be a continuing learning experience for all of Colorado’s freshmen.

Guard Jalin Holland already has learned this much: the altitude is no joke.

The CU men’s basketball team resumed its summer practice schedule Monday, marking the second “official” workout for the Buffaloes’ rookies. As head coach Tad Boyle frequently says, the five players in CU’s freshman class are drinking from a firehose in terms of the new information flying at them. Holland is no different.

Yet after his first practice as a Buffalo last week, the 6-foot-4 guard also admitted some extra sprints might be the story of his summer.

“Definitely conditioning. I’m not going to lie,” Holland said when asked about his personal top priority for being able to contribute immediately. “I need to get into game shape.”

Game day won’t arrive until Nov. 3, when the new-look Buffs tip off the 2025-26 season — the 16th under Boyle — at home against Montana State. But a busy summer schedule that includes a four-game exhibition tour in Australia will provide Holland and the Buffs’ other newcomers an opportunity to get a jump-start on the season.

A native of Los Lunas, N.M., Holland spent last season at Dream City Christian in Glendale, Ariz., where he was teammates with fellow CU freshman Fawaz “Tacko” Ifaola. Holland is ranked No. 129 overall in the 2025 recruiting class and the No. 22 shooting guard, per 247Sports.com. Holland and guard Josiah Sanders (124) are the highest-ranked players in a Buffs recruiting class ranked 40th in the nation and eighth in the Big 12 (again per 247Sports).

Beyond guard Barrington Hargress, a high-scoring transfer from UC Riverside, the Buffs boast little experience along the perimeter. Among CU’s returning guards are Felix Kossaras, who averaged 10.9 minutes in 29 games as a freshman, and Andrew Crawford, who spent his freshman season redshirting.

That duo, in addition to Holland, Sanders, and fellow freshmen Ian Inman and Isaiah Johnson will have ample opportunity to earn playing time for a Buffs team that lacked a defensive stopper along the perimeter and struggled from 3-point range.

Monday marked the second of the Buffs’ 10 pre-trip practices, with additional practices scheduled for Tuesday and Wednesday. Rotations won’t be decided during the summer practices, or even the four-game exhibition tour that includes a matchup with the Australian Boomers, the country’s national team. But it will give players like Holland a chance to get their feet wet before getting thrown into the fire in November.

“They’ve been recruiting me since sophomore year of high school, and we really had that connection, which I appreciated,” Holland said. “Great strength program. Great coaching staff. Definitely the speed of the game (is different). I’d also say shot-making is a lot tougher.

“I’ve played Josiah twice and we always see each other at tournaments. Tacko, obviously I know. We think coach got us for a reason. Obviously, we want to have an immediate impact, if that’s not too much to say. That will be a really big key for us.”

Johnson, a late arrival for summer workouts because of his high school’s late graduation date in Southern California, participated in his first practice Monday.