The Duke basketball team is too loaded with freshman talent for each of the first-year starters to get their moment in the sun, but 7-footer [autotag]Khaman Maluach[/autotag] might be the most underrated lottery prospect in the country right now.
It’s hard to label a consensus top-10 draft pick as ‘underrated,’ but it feels apt given how rarely Maluach is the subject of discussion. Even in Duke’s last two games, the former Olympian has put together a pair of double-doubles just for [autotag]Cooper Flagg[/autotag] to score 42 points against the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and [autotag]Kon Knueppel[/autotag] to make six 3-pointers against Miami.
No matter how much attention Maluach gets, however, he’s been instrumental in the Blue Devils finding their offensive groove over the last month.
Duke has scored at least 82 points in five of its last six games, clambering all the way to fourth in KenPom’s adjusted offensive efficiency rankings, and Maluach’s expanded role has been essential to that growth. The center has averaged 23.2 minutes and taken 5.2 shots from the floor per game, notable jumps from his 18.2 minutes and 2.6 attempts in the first 11 games.
His evolution is obvious on tape as well, as his teammates look much more comfortable throwing the ball toward the rim when he’s in the paint. Knueppel, Flagg, and the other ball-handlers seem willing to throw up lobs even when Maluach doesn’t have perfect leverage, relying upon his 9-foot-8 standing reach to make a play on the ball.
His combination of size and speed makes him particularly impossible to stop once he gets the ball in his hands. He often doesn’t even dribble, either plucking the ball out of the air for a dunk or spinning for a short floater. The process results in some insane efficiency as he hasn’t missed multiple shots in a game since November 16. He’s 79.7% from the field this season, and his 149.8 offensive rating laps any other Blue Devil with enough minutes to qualify (Knueppel is second at 129.3).
The end result is a player averaging 11.3 points over Duke’s last 11 games and 14.0 points over the last three.
And that doesn’t even mention the part of his game that makes him a truly elite prospect: his defense.
Maluach’s height and long arms make him an obvious rim protector, averaging 1.1 blocks per game, and his mere presence is a big reason why Duke’s opponents have an effective field goal percentage of 42.6%.
But he sets himself apart from other talented bigs with his speed, which was on full display against Miami. There were several moments in which the Hurricanes switched to drag Maluach out to the perimeter, hoping to sneak a smaller guard around him, and he met the challenge with ease. Miami’s lost 13 of its past 14 games, yes, but that was one of KenPom’s top 50 offenses on the year, and Maluach was a steel trap inside and out.
Flagg is the best player in the country, and Knueppel’s increased consistency from the 3-point line gives Duke a championship ceiling. But if the Blue Devils actually cut down the nets, Maluach will probably be the talent that puts them over the top.