Making Case for Duke’s Maliq Brown To Be Drafted

The Duke basketball program retained a lot of its rotation from the 2025-26 season, which is a bit uncharacteristic for a program that tends to rely on incoming freshman talent year in and year out.

This time around, head coach Jon Scheyer and his staff are returning four of Duke’s top six scorers from a season ago in Patrick Ngongba, Dame Sarr, Caleb Foster, and Cayden Boozer. The team’s top two scorers, Cameron Boozer and Isaiah Evans, elected to make the jump to the NBA.

Mar 27, 2026; Washington, DC, USA; Duke Blue Devils forward Maliq Brown (6) shoots the ball against St. John’s Red Storm forward Zuby Ejiofor (24) in the first half during a Sweet Sixteen game of the East Regional of the men’s 2026 NCAA Tournament at Capital One Arena. Mandatory Credit: Amber Searls-Imagn Images | Amber Searls-Imagn Images

Another veteran Blue Devil who will not be back with the program in 2026-27 is big man Maliq Brown, who graduated and has exhausted his collegiate eligibility. The 6’9″ Swiss-army-knife isn’t garnering a ton of hype on NBA Draft boards, but he should be getting a lot more attention. Here’s why.

Any NBA Team Could Use Maliq Brown’s Skillset

Maliq Brown never generated much NBA attention throughout his career. Across his career, the former Syracuse transfer averaged 5.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, 1.5 assists, and 1.6 steals a night. The box score will never jump out at fans, but his defensive impact was unlike any other player in college basketball.

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In 2025-26, Brown was named the ACC Defensive Player of the Year and received the Lefty Driesell Award, given to the nation’s top defensive player. Once again, the box score numbers won’t reflect his impact, but his versatility and impact on winning are unlike any other player.

Duke Blue Devils forward Maliq Brown (6) dunks near TCU Horned Frogs guard Jayden Pierre (1) March 21, 2026 during the second half of the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament second round East Region game at the Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville,…


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Publish date : 2026-05-10 16:00:00

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