Colorado’s Frida Formann is happy with the victory against Oklahoma State in NCAA basketball on November 12, 2023. (Cliff Grassmick/Staff Photographer)
Years ago, while growing up in Denmark, Frida Formann was playing basketball with her older brother when the topic of shooting fundamentals came up.
“He showed me this video of these people saying, ‘Oh, you have to jump and land in the same place,’ and all this stuff that’s like the classic stuff – and then he shows all these great shooters in the NBA who don’t shoot not like that at all,” said Formann, a senior guard on the Colorado women’s basketball team. “If you feel comfortable shooting the way you do and it goes in, then do it. THE.”
Formann has always had her own style — her feet scissor-move when she’s in the air, the right foot landing in front of the left — because it’s comfortable. And it’s worked to the point where Formann is on pace to become CU’s all-time leader in 3-point shooting, while also being one of the most accurate shooters in program history.
Leading CU’s game against No. 12 UCLA on Monday (7 p.m., ESPN2), Formann is third on the Buffs’ all-time list with 242 made 3s, just 15 behind Bianca Smith (257 from 2006 to 2010) and 10 behind the current one. assistant coach Shelley Sheetz (252 from 1991 to 1995).
By the time the 11th-ranked Buffaloes finish this season, Formann could very well be at the top of that list, although that was never a record she pursued.
“Once it started talking and I was in the top five, I was like, ‘Oh, I can probably break that,'” said Formann, who is fifth all-time in the program in 3-point percentage (.375), just behind Sheetz. (.381), which is fourth. “But I always thought it would come naturally and not feel like something I was chasing. That’s my job is to make 3s so I think if I keep doing that it would come naturally.
This came naturally because she does not skimp on the pursuit of individual and collective excellence.
“It’s really cool to have a front row seat watching Frida,” Sheetz said. “I see his work ethic. I see her taking additional photos. I see her being a student of the game.
“I think something that is taken for granted about Frida is Frida’s basketball IQ. The kid has a phenomenal basketball IQ, but his work ethic is on the same level. … She reaps the fruits of her labor.
Formann’s sophomore year played a key role in that development.
As a freshman, she averaged 12.4 points and 3.0 rebounds and posted the 10th best single-season 3-point percentage in CU history (.408). However, as a sophomore, she dropped to 7.5 points per game and didn’t shoot well (.272 from beyond the arc).
Since then, in two seasons, Formann has not only regained her scoring touch, but has become a much better all-around player.
CU’s third-leading scorer (12.8 points per game) this season, Formann is also third in assists (2.4), averages 1.2 steals per game and has become a good defender. She also has the second-best career free throw percentage in CU history, at .851, behind Fagan (.861) and just ahead of Sheetz (.848).
“She does a lot of other things that are also very impactful and have nothing to do with shooting or making 3s,” CU head coach JR Payne said. “I think you need a lot of maturity, especially when you’ve been a scorer and you’re an excellent shooter. Your identity can be tied up in this pretty quickly if you’re not very smart, but she’s very smart, so she was able to get away with it.
Overcoming the sophomore slump was a process that involved engaging with people through struggles rather than internalizing them, and Formann said that season fueled his success over the past two years.
“It has matured me a lot in my approach and, I think, has kind of shaped me into the type of leader that I am as well and what I emphasize,” she said. “I also think it taught me that you can have bad games and people can say you’re in bad shape or whatever, but you still have to show up every day. Every match is a new opportunity.
A new opportunity awaits Formann and the Buffs on Monday as they try to end a three-game losing streak when they visit UCLA. There’s a good chance Formann will get closer to the 3-point record, but that’s not his goal.
Nearly 30 years after her UC career ended, Sheetz said she remembers the team’s success far more than her individual numbers. Formann has the same perspective as she strives not to be the all-time leader in 3-point shooting, but to be the best possible leader for a team heading to a third straight NCAA Tournament.
“(Breaking the 3-point record) is something that’s like, ‘That would be cool to do,’” she said. “I always wanted to leave a legacy more in terms of who I am and how people remember their interactions with me as a teammate and a player. So I hope that precedes the numbers.
