Duke basketball's Maliq Brown is set to return for the Blue Devils' game against UNC. Here's what it means for Duke.

Duke’s defense — and Brown’s role in it — has been talked about at length all season. From the moment he entered the game and immediately came up with a steal, Brown’s active hands made life difficult for North Carolina ball handlers.

Junior forward Maliq Brown has been sidelined for nearly three weeks with a sprained knee. The Duke defensive specialist is making progress toward a return.

Duke forward Maliq Brown is available and expected to return for Saturday’s game against North Carolina, ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported on ESPN’s College GameDay. Brown has been sidelined since Jan. 11 with a knee injury.

Maliq Brown is available for No. 2-ranked Duke's Saturday game against the North Carolina Tar Heels, according to ESPN's Pete Thamel. He was dealing with a knee injury, having been sidelined since Jan.

Maliq Brown has missed the last four games for Duke. On Thursday, the transfer forward got a massive update before the Blue Devils upcoming game.

Even so, Brown, currently leading the No. 2-ranked Blue Devils (18-2, 10-0) with his 1.5 steals per game while also averaging 4.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists as a workmanlike spark plug off the bench across his 15 outings to date, made another positive stride on Wednesday.