Duke's Scheyer Has 'Big Picture in Mind' With Senior's Recovery

But now with less than a week until the fourth Duke basketball squad under Jon Scheyer's command tips off its official 2025-26 slate, it remains unclear if the Blue Devils' only remaining injured piece, senior forward and former All-ACC Defensive Team selection Maliq Brown, will be back to 100 percent in time for the regular season opener.

Scheyer's Thoughts

"This week is important," Scheyer said about the status of Brown, who underwent a minor procedure for his knee injury back in late September, following the squad's exhibition finale win at Tennessee. "Our goal is to be ready for Texas and that first game. But we're also keeping the big picture in mind. He's so important to us: his ability to change our defense, his ability to play multiple positions.

"I can't say today, but I can tell you that everything in our power we're going to do to get him ready for the first game, without setting it back for going forward."

Maliq Brown also sat out the Blue-White intrasquad scrimmage at Countdown to Craziness earlier this month.

Last season, his first campaign with the Blue Devils as an in-ACC transfer following two years with the Syracuse Orange, Maliq Brown averaged 2.5 points, 3.7 rebounds, 1.5 assists, and an impressive 1.3 steals in his 15.8 minutes per outing as a key reserve in Durham.

However, injuries stacked up, ultimately limiting the Culpeper, Va., native and long-limbed talent to only 26 appearances for a group that finished 35-4 overall, won the ACC Tournament, and reached the Final Four in San Antonio before losing to the Houston Cougars.

Duke basketball's regular season campaign gets underway with a neutral-court non-conference battle against the unranked Texas Longhorns in Charlotte's Spectrum Center at 8:45 p.m. ET Tuesday (ESPN).