CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Maliq Brown is “close” to making his return to Duke basketball, but the 6-foot-9, 225-pound forward is not quite there yet.
Brown remains sidelined for a couple of weeks following a minor knee procedure. It’s the latest setback for the senior, who missed 13 games last season with a shoulder injury.
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Now entering his second year at Duke, Brown’s shoulder is no longer an issue, instead it is his knee that has slowed him down. The good news: his return shouldn’t be far off.
“For us with Maliq, he’s close to coming back,” head coach Jon Scheyer said at ACC Tipoff on Wednesday, Oct. 8. “We still have not seen our full group together, so I think for me as a coach that’s the biggest challenge that we’re missing a key guy, and we haven’t been able to see what that looks like, but also, for the other players to understand what it’s like to have Maliq out there on the floor.”
Brown participated in a majority the Blue Devils’ practice on Tuesday, Oct. 7, and said he’s feeling good while continuing to rehab.
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“I’m feeling good, yesterday I worked out, I practiced,” Brown said at ACC Tipoff. “Practiced majority of the practice yesterday but I’m feeling good. I’ve been doing my workouts, still doing my rehab and stuff with my medical staff just to make sure my body is still good.”
He’s hopeful he’ll soon be cleared for full participation.
“Hopefully coming out the next week and stuff, just be ready to go on the court with the rest of my teammates and start practicing the whole practice,” Brown said.
Brown transferred to Duke from Syracuse in April 2024. During his one season with the Blue Devils, he averaged 2.5 points and 3.7 rebounds in just under 16 minutes across 26 games, being described as by Scheyer as a “defensive menace” with 33 steals and nine blocks.
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Duke will play exhibitions vs. UCF (Oct. 21) and at Tennessee (Oct. 26) before officially starting its season on Nov. 4 against Texas as the Spectrum Center in Charlotte.
Anna Snyder covers Duke for The Fayetteville Observer as part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at asnyder@gannett.com or follow her @annaesnydr on X, formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Maliq Brown ‘close’ to making his return to Duke basketball
