Forward Cooper Flagg has rightfully been the biggest NBA Draft storyline for the third-ranked Duke Blue Devils this season, who are currently cruising as one of the top teams in the nation.

A rising subplot, though, has been the play of fellow five-star Khaman Maluach, who’s quickly amassing one of the better reputations in the 2025 cycle.

At 7-foot-2, Malauch signed on to anchor Duke’s interior on both ends, and done that he has with length, moderate athleticism and decent basketball instincts on both ends. He’s a highly efficient play-finisher — finishing much more than not on that end — who’s also been able to stifle the opposition around the rim with solid shot-block timing. He’s long been on NBA Draft radars, even playing sparing minutes in the recent Olympics for South Sudan, and seeing some success.

Through 25 games with the Blue Devils, he’s averaged 8.3 points, 6.2 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in just over 20 minutes. The kickers are his 72% shooting overall, as well as 74% from the line, a strong number for his archetype. 

He continued his upwards trend on Saturday night, hitting all but one of his nine field goal attempts in adding 17 points, six rebounds and a block to Duke’s efforts. The Blue Devils came away with a resounding 106-70 win over Stanford, and both Flagg and Maluach continued to bolster their draft stock.

Two-way seven footers have been an increasingly successful archetype in recent drafts, as seen by the immediate impact of players like Walker Kessler, Dereck Lively, and plenty more. Malauch fits into this mold well with his innate size, but has a higher ceiling, due to his late start in basketball, as well as premier touch that could extend even further than the paint.

Per an earlier scouting report from NBA Draft on SI on Malauch: “His jumper, especially from beyond the arc, will be a swing skill for his draft stock in the modern NBA. Maluach is slowly starting to score further from the rim, but isn’t a perimeter threat by any means entering his freshman season. There’s reason for optimism with his fluidity and mechanics, but it’s hypothetical as of now.”

All these factors could see a pretty substantial rise in the 2025 NBA Draft, be it in the next few months, or even on draft night. It already seems he’s caught more attention from NBA experts, as he’s floating around the top five to seven in more recent mocks. For now, it seems unshakeable that he’ll end up a lottery pick.

Most teams near the top likely will be looking to come away with more than a center, but all it will take is one to be keen on his skillset for him to join Flagg in the upper ranks of the ’25 draft.

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