North Carolina QB Drake Maye Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Drake Maye receives brother's support at draft in heartwarming way

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports
By Darryn Albert | Last updated 4/25/24

Luke Maye was not about to miss out on his brother’s big day.

Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN revealed on Thursday the incredible gesture that Luke, the ex-UNC basketball star, had for his younger brother Drake, the NFL QB prospect. Luke, who currently plays in the Japan Professional Basketball League, reportedly had his agents negotiate a contract clause that would allow him to travel back to the U.S. in the middle of the season. This was so that Luke could attend the NFL Draft when Drake was selected.

Indeed, Luke made the over 6,000-mile journey to Detroit for the draft on Thursday. He was in the green room with Drake and even appeared in the background of Drake’s predraft interview with NFL Network.

"He's my MVP."

Drake Maye got a little surprise on the red carpet when he got to meet his childhood hero Cam Newton ahead of hearing his name called tonight.

: 2024 #NFLDraft – 8pm ET on NFLN/ESPN/ABC
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— NFL Network (@nflnetwork) April 25, 2024

Luke, who is six years older than Drake, had a standout four-year career with the Tar Heels. He was a member of UNC’s national title team in 2017 and even hit a memorable game-winner to beat Kentucky in the Elite Eight. Luke would then go undrafted by the NBA but has since played in the NBA G League as well as overseas in Italy, Spain, Turkey and Japan.

As for Drake, who continued the family legacy with a strong couple of years as the starting quarterback for UNC, he wound up going No. 3 overall in the draft to the New England Patriots. As the third QB picked in the draft (after Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels), Drake was able to share his priceless moment with all of his brothers, including Luke.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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