Even in a reserve role last season, Maliq Brown was the guy Duke turned to when it needed to shut off the water for opposing offenses. Whether plugging gaps off the ball, sliding with guards in space or jamming up pick-and-roll actions before they could even start, Brown was the defensive stopper who quietly disrupted the flow.
Now, with a larger role on the horizon, the question becomes: just how far can the 6-foot-9, 220-pound Brown elevate his game? The answer to that question will set the foundation for Duke’s defense.
Let’s take a closer look at Brown’s game, uncover what sets him apart as a defender and explore what that could mean for the 2025-26 Blue Devils.
Defensive Impact: Quick Numbers
Injuries took a toll on Brown during the 2024–25 season, limiting him to just 410 minutes across 26 games due to toe, knee and shoulder issues. Even when healthy, he was competing for playing time in a crowded center rotation with two 5-star talents: Khaman Maluach and Patrick Ngongba. Still, Brown made an outsized impact on both ends of the floor — with his true value shining brightest on the defensive side.
Brown finished his first season at Duke with a defensive box plus-minus of 7.1, the highest mark in the country for players who logged at least 25 percent of their team’s minutes. He was once again a STOCKS machine, posting a 4.8 percent steal rate and a 2.4 percent block rate. Over the past two seasons, Brown has averaged more than four combined steals and blocks per 40 minutes. He also became just the 10th high-major player (appearing in at least 25 percent of a team’s minutes) since the 2007-08 season to have a defensive box plus-minus above 7.0, along with 2.0 percent steal rate and 2.0 percent block rate — joining other defensive stars like Matisse Thybulle, Nerlens Noel, Mylik Wilson and Walker Kessler.
Duke ended the season with the No. 5 defense in the country, per KenPom’s adjusted efficiency metric — a testament to a roster stacked with versatile, multi-positional defenders. The Blue Devils were an elite two-way team with impressive lineup flexibility. Yet, even with all that talent, including Cooper Flagg, there were nights when Brown stood out as their most impactful defender.
According to CBB Analytics, Duke’s defense was more efficient with Brown on the floor, allowing just 93.2 points per 100 possessions with a 42.9 percent effective field goal percentage. With Brown on the bench, those numbers rose to 97.9 points per 100 possessions and 44.9 percent effective shooting. While the sample is relatively small — again just 410 minutes — and there may be some 3-point shooting variance baked in (opponents shot 29.3 3P% from deep with Brown on the floor vs. 31.8 3P% without him), his presence consistently shifted Duke’s defensive profile in meaningful ways.
When Brown stepped in as the primary screen defender, Duke routinely ramped up its defensive pressure — leveraging his speed to switch onto opposing guard creators or to hedge aggressively at the level of the screen.
Zeke Mayo thinks he has Hunter Dickinson open on the short roll, with Brown showing above the level. As Mayo tries to slide in a pocket pass, though, Brown is able to reach into the passing lane and get the steal.
The most noticeable statistical difference between lineups anchored by Brown and those featuring Maluach or Ngongba was turnover creation. With Brown on the floor, Duke’s defense posted a 17.4 percent turnover rate (85th percentile), including a 14.2 percent steal rate (98th percentile), according to CBB Analytics. In these minutes, Duke’s collective length and speed often took over.
There were plenty of possessions where an opposing ball handler tried to attack Brown off the dribble — only for him to slide into position, beat them to the spot and knock the ball loose. Here, Brown stuns Chucky Hepburn on this possession, switching out with ferocity and creating the steal.
Defenses that can seamlessly switch across all five positions often force offenses to play deep into the shot clock and settle for off-the-dribble jumpers — lower-efficiency shots taken at lower-efficiency moments in a possession. To that end, opposing offenses averaged 19.0 seconds per possession against Duke — one of the slowest marks in the country — while shooting just 39.4 percent on two-point attempts and 31.3 percent on three-point attempts in the half court, according to CBB Analytics.
Scheme Versatility: What can’t Brown do for you?
Last season, Maluach operated in a variety of pick-and-roll coverages for Duke — switching, the hard hedge, playing up at the level — but his primary role was dropping below the level of the screen screen. The same held true for Ngongba. Brown, by contrast, doesn’t offer Maluach’s 7-foot-2 length, nor does he have the bulk of Ngongba’s 250-pound frame. Instead, he brings quick-twitch movements and high-level defensive anticipation. At 6-foot-9, those traits allow him to defend at the level of the screen, drop back or switch onto opposing guards.
Brown can execute all of these coverages, and that scheme versatility gives Duke the flexibility to adjust based on game situations and personnel matchups. If Jon Scheyer wants to dial up the pressure and put two defenders on the ball, Brown can be a disruptive presence at or above the level of the screen with his hands. He also has the lateral quickness and footwork to recover back to his man once the ball swings and Duke’s defense shifts into rotation.
Clemson is one of the best hi-lo offenses in the country under Brad Brownell. On this possession, Brown hard hedges the ball screen, routing Dillon Hunter away from the basket. As Ian Schieffelin leaks back up the floor to provide an outlet for Hunter, Viktor Lakhin establishes position in the paint. The Tigers look set up to run hi-lo with Schieffelin and Lakhin; however, Brown sprints from the tiger paw to the paint, where he’s able to get underneath Lakhin and avoid being sealed.
The frontcourt pairing of Flagg and Brown was a highly impactful 4-5 duo last season: Duke was +129 in 326 minutes with Flagg and Brown on the floor and the other two centers on the bench. Flagg and Brown are both quick processors who excel at rotations and making plays in space. When Brown defended at or above the level in pick-and-roll coverages, Flagg shifted into Free Safety Mode on the backside, while the three Duke defenders outside of the action positioned themselves to contain the four off-ball offensive players.
Georgia Tech point guard Naithan George is blitzed on this play with Brown aggressively trapping at the point of attack with Caleb Foster.
The Blue Devils apply the high hedge with Brown on Virginia Tech’s Ben Hammond, who gets pushed out toward half-court. As Brown defends well above the arc, Flagg roams the middle ground between the roller, Mylyjael Poteat, and the corner spacer, Tyler Johnson. Hammond lofts a pass into Poteat in the paint, but Flagg arrives in time to disrupt the catch. Brown recovers and joins to double Poteat. Johnson cuts in from the corner and briefly finds himself open, but he bobbles a tough pass on the move — giving Flagg just enough time to rotate back.
Despite having a slightly higher center of gravity, Brown is a fluid 1-on-1 defender. He has good hips and moves well in space. When the Blue Devils switch 1-5 and focus on keeping the ball in front, Brown ranks among the top college centers at defending guard creators.
Duke vaporized Jaland Lowe, a super fast and creative point guard, during the matchup with Pittsburgh in Durham last season. The Blue Devils aggressively switched 1-5 and forced Lowe into his least efficient game of the season: 3-of-12 shooting from the floor, including 1-of-8 on 2-point attempts, zero free throw attempts and three turnovers.
Here, Brown switches to Lowe, mirrors the southpaw on his drive attempt and deflects the ball out, forcing Ishmael Leggett to take a tough shot late in the clock.
Compared to other full-time high-major centers (he played just 30 combined minutes last season as the nominal 4, alongside either Maluach or Ngongba), Brown is smaller and less bulky, making him somewhat more vulnerable in drop coverage. He doesn’t fit the mold of a towering back-line anchor, nor does he have the imposing size of a 7-footer to firmly establish position in the paint and protect the rim. Still, Brown’s comfort navigating the space between the ball handler and the rim, combined with his active hands, allows him to remain a formidable paint deterrent when deployed in the drop.
George Mason starts this possession with empty-side pick-and-roll, which Duke handles — Brown in the drop and Flagg in rearview pursuit. The Patriots move the ball side-to-side and look to launch 5-out action. As the ball is swung to Jalen Haynes atop the key, Brown jumps the passing lane, generates the steal and leads the break.
During the matchup with Arizona in Tucson, Duke went under ball screens involving shaky shooters Jaden Bradley and KJ Lewis. On this possession, Brown sinks under the screen, providing space for James to shoot the gap and get back to Lewis. As Lewis attempts to spin away from James, he’s met by Brown’s hands. Brown gets the deflection and forces the tie-up.
With Brown as the lone big last season, only 26.4 percent of opponent field goal attempts came at the rim (85th percentile nationally), according to CBB Analytics. A little further out, opponents shot just 31.9 percent on paint attempts away from the rim against those Brown-led lineups, another strong number (97th percentile).
Spring a 'Liq
Brown is an incredibly nimble player with excellent footwork and the processing speed to properly position himself before plays fully develop. He makes advanced reads as an off-ball defender. What truly sets him apart, though — whether he’s on the ball or operating as a helper — is his dexterity. He has some of the quickest hands in college hoops, something that’s hard to truly appreciate until you watch him up close. There’s a Reece Beekman-style, guard-level quality to the way he moves and places his arms and hands. He moves differently for a big.
As Duke sets up its full-court man-to-man press against Virginia Tech, Brown pressures the ball. The 6-foot-7 Ben Burnham looks to inbound, but Brown slides left and deflects the pass toward the sideline.
One second later, the Hokies try again to inbound against Duke’s press. This time, it’s the 6-foot-4 Jaydon Young taking the ball. Once again, Brown — stationed at the point of attack — swats away a would-be pass. This isn’t Duke picking on a mid-major. It’s Brown singlehandedly short-circuiting the press break of an ACC opponent.
Brown is an active body on defense, but the use of his hands to create deflections and turnovers isn’t a guessing game of reach-ins. He doesn’t flail, gamble excessively or commit pointless take fouls. His approach is meticulous. It’s a cold calculation. It’s a science. It’s precision. It’s gone before you know it.
He’ll check into a game, and as soon as the ball is swung in his direction, he’s sizing these things up, ready to pounce. Look at the hustle here as Brown blows up this 5-out Zoom action and gets back into the play to get the steal.
One of my favorite cat-and-mouse dynamics with Brown last season was watching how bothersome he could be at the point of attack when an opposing center tried to initiate 5-out action. The offensive 5 would catch the ball at the top of the key or near the elbow and face the floor — looking for cutters or teammates flying off screens. On some of these 5-out possessions, before the second pass could even be made, Brown would immediately jam things up, poking the ball loose to create a turnover or deflecting a pass that forced the offense to reset deeper into the shot clock.
Clemson runs Zipper action on this possession for Chase Hunter, which then flows into empty-side two-man game between Hunter and Lakhin. Before Clemson can really get into the action, though, Brown punches the ball loose from Lakhin and creates another turnover.
Even when opposing bigs thought they had the ball protected and out of Brown’s reach, he still found angles and exposed vulnerabilities.
Of course, these types of steals ignite Duke’s transition offense. UNC opens the play in a Stack formation, with Drake Powell popping to the left wing before flowing into Chin action — Jalen Washington sets a back screen for Davis. Powell swings the ball to Washington, giving UNC its 5-out look. As Davis cuts back up the lane for a handoff from Washington, Brown rips the ball away and starts the break, leading to a Flagg layup.
A Pillar in the Post
Brown’s handiwork is a feature of his post defense, too. He may lack the raw strength to overpower some of the stronger low-post targets, but he compensates with agility, relentless effort, quick hands and length to be a constant pest down low.
Maxime Raynaud has a size advantage on Brown, who battles to not get caught on Raynaud’s back side. Jaylen Blakes has a decent angle to toss in this post-entry pass, but Brown sees it coming and glides around the 7-foot-1 Frenchman — finishing the play with a full-extension dive and deflection.
Auburn sets up a screen-the-screener action with Tahaad Pettiford and Johni Broome, aiming to create a post-up opportunity for Broome off the cross screen. Flagg does an excellent job pressuring Denver Jones on the wing, delaying the entry pass. Brown has time to recover and deflect the ball before Broome can bring it under his egis.
A minute later, Auburn appears ready to initiate its Flex action on this possession, but instead, the Tigers feed the ball into Broome in the post. Brown defends 1-on-1; as Broome spins toward the baseline, Brown reaches from behind and knocks the ball loose.
With these quick deflections, Brown can nullify some of the strength advantage of more powerful players — deflecting the ball away before they can get into his body.
Team Defense
Whether he's locking down the post or holding his own in isolation, Brown is a force on the ball—that much is certain. But his impact extends well beyond that. Off the ball, Brown is just as disruptive. He jumps passing lanes, plugs gaps and provides weak-side rim protection. Simply put, he brings the complete defensive package. He covers a ton of ground and is always looking to create chaos. Dribble too close, and he’s quick to swipe.
Take this play for example: Clemson’s Myles Foster beats Tyrese Proctor off the dribble, but as he jump-stops in the paint, Brown is already there, waiting. He slides over with strong help defense, digs into the drive and strips the ball for another turnover.
Louisville guard Terrence Edwards rejects the ball screen against Duke and attacks downhill. Foster does a great job in help defense, rotating over to cut off the drive. Edwards spins away from Foster, but Brown is there, ready to strip the ball.
Late in the game against Kentucky, Andrew Carr tries to attack Flagg but can’t shake him. So he tries to muscle his way closer to the rim as Flagg remains vertical. Brown — seemingly in two places at once, digging in on Carr while tracking Brandon Garrison’s cut — swoops in and knocks the ball loose.
On the next defensive possession against Kentucky, Brown switches onto Kerr Kriisa while Foster battles with Garrison in the paint. Brown shows help on the back side, then quickly rotates out when the ball swings to Kriisa. He closes out under control and uses his left hand to block the 3-point attempt. According to my charting, Brown recorded three blocks on three-point shots last season — the second-most on Duke’s roster, trailing only Flagg (7).
Take note: Brown’s use of his left hand to block jump shots from right-handed shooters is a subtle but savvy trait — a heady play that showcases his functional dexterity, allowing him to contest on the ball side.
For example, this possession comes from two seasons ago against Boston College, and Brown’s all-around effort is remarkable. He begins by fronting Quinten Post, now with the Golden State Warriors, outside the lane and fights through a cross screen that brings Post to the left side of the floor. When Chris Bell gambles for a steal and whiffs, Donald Hand Jr., a solid 3-point shooter, is left open, at least briefly. Despite being literally shoved from behind by Post, Brown still manages to close the gap and smother the 3-point attempt.
It’s a ridiculous display of effort and body control from Brown — not only does he block the shot with his off-hand while being pushed, but he also bounces up for a quick second jump to beat Hand to the rebound.
There are stretches when Brown strings together three or four sharp rotations in a matter of seconds. On this possession against Syracuse, he switches onto point guard Jaquan Carlos, then slides over to dig at the right elbow as Kyle Cuffe drives on Foster. Moments later, he recovers and blocks Carlos’ 3-point attempt as the shot clock expires — once again using his left hand. In just a few seconds, Brown snuffs out two potential advantages and finishes the play with a block.
Brown’s hand speed and feel for the game show up in subtle but impactful ways that don’t always appear in the box score. On this play, as James drives and misses a shot at the rim out of a screen-the-screener pick-and-roll with Flagg, UNC has a chance to push the pace, especially with Flagg crashing the glass. Proctor wisely races back, but Duke’s floor balance isn’t great; UNC has numbers. But before Elliot Cadeau, an excellent hit-ahead passer, can connect with Ian Jackson to create a 2-on-1 with Davis, a backpedaling Brown steps in, extends his right arm and breaks up the pass.
The deflection forces the Tar Heels to take the ball out and settle into their half-court offense, an inherently less efficient possession type. Think about this from an expected value standpoint: how much does Brown’s deflection alter the efficiency of the ensuing offensive possession? He makes winning, game-altering plays like this all of the time.
Ace in the Hole
When healthy last season, Brown served as a kind of security blanket for Scheyer and his staff. It’s not just that he delivered in big moments — he was also the go-to option when Duke needed to lock in defensively, switch everything to keep the ball in front and avoid breakdowns in leverage situations. Brown was the skeleton key that unlocked it all.
Slotting him in at center comes with some marginal trade-offs — namely on the glass and at the rim — but nearly everything else he brings is a net positive: timely disruption, disciplined rotations and the versatility to guard any position. Brown consistently tilted important matchups with his unique mix of defensive playmaking and quick-trigger passing in tight spaces.
While Isaiah Evans drew most of the headlines for his out-of-body 3-point shooting in Duke’s comeback win over Auburn at Cameron Indoor last December, it was Brown who anchored both ends. He logged 25 minutes, holding his own in a physical battle with Johni Broome, switching onto the twitchy Tahaad Pettiford and disrupting Auburn’s hybrid Flex offense with well-timed off-ball switches that effectively shut down the Tigers’ access to the paint.
Brown’s ability to switch the baseline Flex screens was a major factor in this game. Auburn entered the night with the No. 1 offense in the country, but the Tigers managed just 17-of-44 shooting from the field (38.6 FG%), including 11-of-26 on two-point attempts (42.3 2P%), during the 25 minutes Brown was on the floor.
Less than a week later, Duke opened conference play at Louisville, another Top 35 offense nationally. Brown’s fingerprints were all over this game. He bothered Louisville center James Scott, a talented high-post hub, when initiating 5-out actions on some possessions and switched out onto Hepburn on others, forcing the famously frugal point guard into one of the worst turnover games of his career. Brown finished with a game-high box plus-minus of 18.1 and swung a comeback win on the road.
In the 29 minutes Brown was on the court, Duke’s defense was dominant, allowing just 0.77 points per possession, per CBB Analytics. Louisville shot only 25.7 percent from the field (9-for-35 FGA), including 28.6 percent on two-point attempts (4-for-14 2PA) and 23.8% from beyond the arc (5-for-21 3PA). The Blue Devils also forced turnovers on 23 percent of Louisville’s possessions during Brown’s time on the floor.
To closeout the regular season, Duke went into Chapel Hill and beat UNC by 13 points. Once again, Brown was massively important, hitting two back-breaking second-half 3-pointers and playing switch defense on Davis.
The Blue Devils were +20 in the 16 minutes with Brown on the floor, scoring 1.46 points per possession on offense and holding the Tar Heels to just 0.71 points per possession.
After re-injuring his shoulder against Georgia Tech in the ACC Tournament, Brown returned two weeks later in the Sweet 16 vs. Arizona. In his first game back, with essentially one functional arm, Brown checked in and held the fort down for a four-minute stretch in the first half while Maluach and Ngongba navigated foul trouble.
It was fitting that on Brown’s first defensive possession against Arizona, he recorded a deflection and altered this layup attempt from Henri Veesaar.
This run of play continued in the Final Four against Houston, where Duke lost by three points but outscored the Cougars by 10 during the 15 minutes Brown was on the floor. Playing through injury, Brown made an impact with his playmaking on both ends of the court. Matched up against Houston’s pressure-packed defense, he made smart reads in space, operated out of 5-out sets and worked the short roll when the Cougars committed two defenders to the ball in pick-and-roll situations. Defensively, Brown managed ball screen coverages and battled in the post against the physical J’Wan Roberts.
The Cougars were held to just 5-of-21 shooting (28.9 eFG%) with Brown on the floor, including 3-of-15 on 2-point attempts (20 2P%).
In 22 minutes of NCAA Tournament action, Duke was +9 with Brown on the floor, allowing under 0.95 points per possession and holding opponents to 9-of-29 shooting (37.9 eFG%). That’s a small sample, but it highlights a larger trend: Brown’s blend of defensive playmaking and versatility consistently elevates Duke in high-leverage moments.
Single-game efficiency numbers are obviously noisy and influenced by 3-point shooting variance. That said, lineups with Brown routinely delivered against tough opponents in hostile, chaotic environments.
Next year’s fit and role
Assuming better injury luck, Brown is in line for a big senior season. Whether he starts or comes off the bench, Brown and Ngongba project as a nasty 1-2 center combination. Ngongba provides more size and legit scoring punch (11.4 points in the paint per 40 minutes), while Brown offers higher-end defensive output and more speed. Brown should be in the conversation for National Defensive Player of the Year, and if Ngongba gets the starting nod, he should also be in consideration for ACC Sixth Man of the Year.
There’s some skill overlap between Brown and Ngongba. Both centers map the floor and excel at passing, which will complement the all-around offensive brilliance of Cameron Boozer, a playmaker and stretch shooter at the 4, and Nik Khamenia, another stretch-4 with good court vision and passing ability. Offensively, the fit should be outstanding, especially as they develop chemistry and rhythm within Duke’s 5-out system. With much of the team’s ball-handling talent gone, Duke’s offense will likely rely even more on playmaking from the frontcourt next season.
Duke’s frontcourt stands out with Brown, Ngongba, Boozer and Khamenia — all 6-foot-9 or taller and capable distributors. That combination of size and playmaking (don’t forget freshman forward Sebastian Wilkins) gives the Blue Devils a group that could rank among the nation's best, alongside the frontcourts of programs like Florida and Michigan.
On defense, Brown will have a lot on his plate this season. With all five starters from last year’s roster selected in the 2025 NBA Draft, there are clearly many holes to fill. Add in the departure of forward Mason Gillis, and the Blue Devils lost significant defensive personnel this offseason. While there’s still strong defensive talent on the roster, including a high-upside player like Dame Sarr, the team’s ability to defend the pick-and-roll, especially when Brown plays at the level or above, will be challenged without Flagg and James flying around behind the action.
Often, when we talk about players stepping into larger roles, the focus is on the offensive side of the floor — scaling up usage while receiving more playing time. If Brown returns at full strength, he won’t just stabilize Duke’s defense — he could be the catalyst that takes it to another level. With his elite mobility, disruptive instincts and versatility in pick-and-roll coverage, Brown is poised to become the heart of a retooled unit and a driving force behind Duke’s national title hopes.