A flat Round 2 loss to Fremantle became the catalyst for Melbourne to unleash Kysaiah Pickett into the midfield.
Frustrated by a role that wasn't fully tapping his strengths, Pickett reached a turning point — one that's fuelled his explosive month since.
The idea of a midfield shift had long hovered. But with Christian Petracca, Clayton Oliver and Jack Viney entrenched around the ball, opportunity was scarce.
That changed in 2026. Under new coach Steven King, a reshaped on-ball brigade — driven by personnel changes and absences — has opened the door, and Pickett has burst through it.
"He's got that inner drive where he wants to be a full-time mid, he wants to be the best in the game," King said on AFL360.
"It was about after round 2, we got touched up by Fremantle and he was a bit frustrated being forward in the side a little bit.
"He sat down with (midfield coach) Nathan Jones and myself and said, ‘I want to play a little bit more inside'.
"Nathan was really firm with him around the requirements of being a full-time mid, and Kozzy has met us halfway with that.
"His talent and his forward-half ability has come to the fore."
Pickett produced his second-best career game against Richmond in the annual Anzac Day eve clash, amassing 27.5 player ratings points for his four-goal, 29-disposal effort.
Since the Dockers clash, the Demons livewire has, on average, attended centre ball-ups at 80 percent, which wasn't commonplace under Simon Goodwin.
His recent surge in form has come amid a challenging personal period, with Pickett travelling to Darwin often to spend time with his children.
In the lead-up to the clash with the Tigers, Pickett made the trip to the Northern Territory - a decision that ultimately proved to be a positive influence.
"I think if you strip it back, from one father to another, if someone wants to see their children, and how can you provide them a workplace where it's flexible enough to do both," King said.
"I want to trust my players, I want to trust Kozzy to do the right thing, and let him know that he's got the flexibility to do both. I think we saw it paid back in spades on Friday night."
