His floor is unbelievably high, but his ceiling is even higher.
The Phoenix Suns had a chance to let history repeat itself, but Brian Gregory and Mat Ishbia took the best player available with the No. 10 pick in the NBA Draft.
Khaman Maluach.
Maluach’s story is different than the typical American prospect, and his tears on stage were a window into who the Suns’ future center is.
“Living in Africa, I had the whole continent on my back. Giving hope to young kids.”
South Sudan native Khaman Maluach was in tears as he was drafted 10th overall pic.twitter.com/osskwuHYHf
— ESPN (@espn) June 26, 2025
Maluach was born September 14, 2006, in Rumbek, South Sudan, but was very young when his family fled to Kawempe, Uganda early in his life. In Uganda, Maluach grew up playing soccer and was not focused on basketball until he attended Luol Deng’s basketball camp at 13 years old.
After that camp, basketball became Maluach’s path to changing his and his family’s lives. He played in the Basketball Africa League and continued his ascension as a teenager until he found himself playing in the 2024 Olympics for Deng and South Sudan. In the friendly matchup against Team USA, Maluach scored 7 points, grabbed 3 rebounds, and blocked a shot in a game South Sudan barely lost 101-100. His minutes were sparse in Pari,s but Maluach continued to grow.
After playing in the Paris Olympics, Maluach, now 7-foot-2, played his freshman season at Duke University with Cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel and was an integral part to its Final Four run. While at Duke, Maluach averaged 8.6 points, 6.6 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game.
Playing at Duke showcased all of Maluach’s strengths and how he will be used at the NBA level. Maluach can anchor an elite NBA defense and has the potential to be an All-NBA defensive center with his length and shot-blocking ability. In college, Duke primarily played drop coverage, but Maluach held up laterally when he switched onto smaller guards. The hope for Maluach is that he becomes a Rudy Gobert-esque level defender and that he will anchor a top 10 NBA defense for a decade, but he needs time to grow.
Maluach did not control the defensive glass at an elite level in college and struggled to read the ball off the rim. Because of his high center of gravity, Maluach could get pushed around early in his NBA career and will be something he has to overcome to become a double-double machine at the NBA. His feel for the game on defense is still growing, and like any young NBA big man, he is going to have incredible moments and will have moments where he looks lost guarding ball screens and getting into foul trouble. The good news is that though he is young, he will play behind Nick Richards and Mark Williams and will have time to develop as a player.
On offense, Maluach is primarily a screen-and-roll big man. With his length, he is a lob threat but is not an explosive leaper. He led the ACC last season in offensive rebounds and has a high motor, something the Suns wanted from its former No. 1 overall pick. The majority of Maluach’s baskets came from hovering around the dunker spot and finishing dump-offs from Duke’s other lottery picks. Maluach rarely played out of the short roll, but he has a soft touch, and I believe he will add an effective floater quickly into his NBA career. Maluach does not create his own offense in the post and will be very dependent on others around him to score around the basket early in his career.
For Maluach to become a truly great offensive player, he will need to become a better jump-shooting big man. At Duke, he shot 4-of-16 from 3, a small sample size, but enough to at least believe it will be something he tries to add to his game. The reason for optimism in Maluach developing a 3-point jump shot is his free-throw percentage. He shot 76.6% from the free throw line at Duke, which shows he has a soft shooting touch and the potential to be an outside shooter.
Scott Wachter-Imagn Images
The other area for Maluach to grow is as a connector. Many NBA offenses use their center as a connector to get the ball from one side to the other and run dribble handoff actions for guards. Maluach did not run many dribble handoffs during his freshman season, and he will need to at least become comfortable with the ball in his hands to keep the offense moving.
The other area for Maluach to grow is as a connector is in the short roll. Having the ability to catch the ball and hit a cutter or swing the ball to the opposite side of the floor is crucial to opening up the floor in NBA offenses.
Now, pointing out some of Maluach’s weaknesses is not to say that he is going to bust. Maluach has a high floor and will likely have a 10-15 year career in the NBA because of his defense and screen and roll abilities after working through the typical growing pains all young centers go through. His floor is unbelievably high, but his ceiling is even higher. If Maluach can add either a jump shot or become an offensive connector away from the basket he can become an All-NBA level center and a generational player for the Phoenix Suns.
Maluach does not turn 19 until September and will need time and support to grow his skills. Getting to learn from fellow Blue Devil Mark Williams (one of the best passing centers in the NBA) and head coach Jordan Ott will be crucial to Maluach’s early success in the NBA.
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