As basketball season approaches, the Blue Zone provides a detailed preview of each player on Duke men's basketball's 2024-25 roster. We’ve already looked at Cameron Sheffield, Patrick Ngongba II, Darren Harris, Isaiah Evans and Mason Gillis. Next up is junior forward Maliq Brown:
Maliq Brown
Year: Junior
Height: 6-foot-9
Position: Forward
2023-24 stat line: 9.5 PPG, 7.2 RPG, 2.2 SPG
Game breakdown: As the Blue Devils’ most notable incoming undergraduate transfer in years, Brown enters the program with a solid resume. The Culpeper, Va., native played his first two seasons of college basketball with Syracuse. Brown’s sophomore year was his best, as he led the Orange in rebounds per game and earned ACC All-Defensive honors. Ironically, his best performance last season came against Duke in Cameron Indoor Stadium, when he scored an efficient 26 points in a loss.
While officially listed as a forward, Brown has looked comfortable playing as a small-ball five, as was often the case at Syracuse. His calling card is his agility as an on-ball defender; Brown totaled 71 steals in the 2023-24 season, the most in the ACC. That immediately makes him one of the Blue Devils’ best in that department.
“He has a chance to be the best defender in college basketball this year,” sophomore guard and teammate Caleb Foster said at ACC Media Day Oct. 9.
On offense, Brown’s vertical and size allow him to feast on efficient shots at or near the rim, with his career 69.8% field goal percentage reflecting that. These abilities are just the tip of the iceberg for Brown — he has also shown excellent court awareness as a secondary playmaker and offensive rebounder. Simply put, he does many things well, and his jack-of-all-trades style should fit well in the big-man focused Blue Devils.
Role on the team: That being said, carving out his exact timeshare on the team will be tricky, as Duke has no shortage of talent this season at the frontcourt. Brown should undoubtedly receive significant playing time as one of the most experienced players on the Blue Devils’ roster, and it would not be a surprise if the junior gets called up to start. Regardless, he will be best utilized as a small-ball center or even at the four to rotate with freshman phenom Cooper Flagg.
NBA comparison: New Orleans Pelicans forward Herbert Jones shares a surprising number of traits in common with Brown. The two have similar measurables, especially in their seven-foot wingspans. This trait, combined with attentive defense, has produced comparable steal and block numbers for Brown and Jones. Additionally, both players are strong playmakers for their position, and Jones played some minutes as an undersized center in Nate Oats’ system at Alabama. Beyond playstyle alone, both have been described as selfless. Jones has referred to himself as a “glue guy,” and the Blue Devils seem to have found their own in Brown.
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