Who is Drake Maye's brother, Luke? A closer look at the former UNC forward's playing career

Modified Apr 26, 2024 02:32 GMT

Drake Maye and his brother Luke, a basketball player

Former UNC star quarterback Drake Maye has finally realized his NFL dreams, going to the New England Patriots in this year`s draft. It`s clearly a culmination of years upon years of hard work, which was also clearly inspired by growing up in a very athletically inclined household.

That said, his brother Luke will be the main focus of this post. Drake`s older brother, like his mom Aimee and dad Mark, is a basketball player. Here`s a quick look at the Pats rookie`s brother and how his hoops career panned out.

Luke Maye: the Tar Heel

Just like his younger brother, Luke Maye went to Chapel Hill and played Division 1 sports. He played for the UNC Tar Heels men`s basketball team from 2015-2019, helping the team to their last championship in 2017. Aside from that, he also earned his own share of accolades, being named Most Improved Player, First Team All-ACC and Third Team All-American in 2018.

The following season, Luke Maye was named Second Team All-ACC and was a two-time Second Team Academic All-American. While he was far from a star for the Tar Heels, the 6-foot-8 forward did his share and was duly rewarded. It`s also not a bad resume for someone who apparently signed up for the team not knowing at first whether he`d earn a full scholarship to UNC or not (via The Charlotte Observer).

Maye averaged 9.9 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in four years with the Tar Heels. His best season in Chapel Hill was in 2017-2018 when he averaged 16.9 points and 10.1 rebounds a game.

Luke Maye: the pro baller

Despite going undrafted in the 2019 NBA Draft, Luke Maye still did what he could to continue his basketball career. His efforts led him to become a member of the Milwaukee Bucks-affiliated Wisconsin Herd in the NBA G-League. His best game for the Herd was on March 7, 2019, when he posted 25 points, nine rebounds, two assists, a block and a steal in a 136–122 win over Washington Wizards affiliate, the Capital City Go-Go.

After spending his time in the G-League, Luke Maye moved on to play overseas. He had a few stops in Italy, Spain, and Turkey before finally landing a roster spot for the Ibaraki Robots of the Japanese B.League, where he currently plays. He was a consistent double-digit scorer during his time in Europe, though he did see his numbers dip slightly in Spain`s ACB.

Right now, though, he`s having his best run as a pro baller so far with Ibaraki in Japan. He is the team`s leading scorer and rebounder at 21.6 points and 10.6 rebounds (via ProBallers.com).