Duke fans everywhere have been awaiting the fate of star defender Maliq Brown and whether the forward would be available for the Blue Devils' regular season opener against Texas on November 4th. It's officially been reported that Brown will be available for the opener. Brown has been dealing with a lingering knee issue over the last few weeks, receiving a knee scope as well. Weeks before the season, Duke head coach Jon Scheyer seemed confident that Brown would be ready for the beginning of the regular season. However, after the senior didn't appear in either of the Blue Devils' two exhibition games, Scheyer then said he was being conservative for the long term. Nonetheless, Brown officially will suit up tonight.
Duke basketball star defender Maliq Brown will be available against Texas
The Blue Devils getting Brown back for the season opener is crucial, as his defensive capabilities completely change what Duke can do from a scheming perspective. It's unclear if he'll be on any sort of minutes restriction, but Brown will at least be suiting up for a portion of the contest.
Duke’s Maliq Brown (knee) will be available for tonight’s game against Texas, per release.
— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) November 4, 2025
A nice boost for the Blue Devils.
The former Syracuse transfer has a chance to be the best all-around defender in college basketball this season. At 6'9" and 225 pounds, Brown has the most active hands in the country and can guard the one through five. He rarely looks for his own offense, but completely transforms the Blue Devils on the defensive side of the ball.
Brown missed a ton of time through the back half of the 2024-25 campaign after suffering two separate dislocated shoulders, causing him to miss practically all of the ACC Tournament and Duke's first two NCAA Tournament games. Scheyer continued to say throughout the preseason that Brown was making great progress with his shoulder, but then a knee issue came into play. He missed both of Duke's exhibition contests, and Scheyer was somewhat hazy when asked early in the week whether Brown would play or not.
Now, what this should mean for Duke fans is that Brown is legitimately healthy as opposed to trying to play through something. Based on his responses throughout the week, it didn't seem like Scheyer would've made Brown active if he wasn't totally good to go.