Carlton are expected to be in the market for draft picks come the off-season as they look to tally the needed points to secure the services of a rising father-son prospect.
Vic Country defender Harry Dean, the son of dual premiership Blues player Peter, is emerging as the lead key defender in his draft class after a strong start to his season in the Coates Talent League and U18s National Championships.
While stopping the tape at 193cm, the Murray Bushrangers prospect has played much taller, often quelling opposing forwards nearing the two-metre mark, with his strong aerial ability and reading of a flighted ball leading traits for the 17-year-old.
Dean played just the one game for the Bushrangers in his bottom-aged campaign due to a broken arm, earning a spot with Murray after starting his 2024 season with Ovens and Murray Football League outfit Lavington.
With five games under his belt this year, Dean has been a consistent cog for the Bushrangers on their last line, averaging 17.3 disposals, 7.0 marks and 3.5 rebound 50s.
His last three games in the CTL have netted him a return of 20.3 disposals, 8.3 marks and 2.3 tackles per game, with that purple patch of form bookending a stellar maiden showing for Vic Country at this year's U18s carnival.
Dean was mong his side's best in their narrow loss to Western Australia last week, with his dominance in the air and smart release from the back half catching the eye.
The 2025 draft crop hasn't formed a strong crop of key defenders toward the top of the draft, meaning Dean could be the top of the list for those looking to bolster their key defensive options.
It means Dean is in contention as a potential first-round selection, which will both please and pique the Blues' recruiters and list team.
Carlton currently wouldn't have the needed draft points to match a bid for Dean if one were to come at Pick 20, with their current hand of selections - 34, 45 and 63 - valued at 510 points in total.
That would leave them needing a bid for Dean to come in at Pick 26 or later, with that selection likely coming late into the opening night of this year's draft due to the load of club-tied prospects rated among the top 20.
A bid that swallows up all three of Carlton's draft selections for 2025 then leaves them with no chance to secure any more of their priority access prospects in the National Draft, requiring them to either trade back into the draft order with future selections or hope their club-tied talent are overlooked by rivals.
It's been great to have some of the Carlton Academy boys - Mingara Clark, Jack Ison and Tyson Gresham - join us for our last few Friday sessions in pre-season! ๐ค pic.twitter.com/3seo0NDzeN
โ Carlton FC (@CarltonFC) December 13, 2024
The Blues also have access to Northern Knights small forward Tyson Gresham and Oakleigh utility Jack Ison as part of their Next Generation Academy, with the latter among the few standouts for Vic Metro in their National Championships opener against South Australia earlier this month.
Both Ison and Gresham could fetch bids late into the draft, adding for the need for Carlton to expand their draft hand through the upcoming trade period.
The issue that adds to Carlton's draft points dilemma is their need to bundle selections for the 2026 count given their ties to one of next year's top talents in Cody Walker, the son of ex-Blue Andrew.
The ability to trade 2027 selections this year could be the avenue that aids Carlton's hopes of securing all of Dean, Ison and Gresham while still holding a position that keeps them in line to attain Walker 12 months later.
Carlton could also trade its 2026 selections this year to boost their draft plans before using 2027 selections to help them next year.
It'll be a ripple effect that will be a significant part of Carlton's draft plans over the next three years, but will see them come away with a strong return of prospects, adding to last year's crop of Jagga Smith, Ben and Lucas Camporeale, Harry O'Farrell and Harry Charleson.
The flip side of their draft planning could mean the Blues are unable to be aggressive in the player trade and free agency market, a strategy they opted for last year in moving for Pick 3, a selection they used on Smith, instead of chasing a ready-made star in Dan Houston.
Collingwood are in a similar position to the Blues, having just 331 draft points from their four picks (36, 54, 64 and 72) while having ties to Vic Metro trio Tom McGuane, Jai Saxena and Zac McCarthy.
The Magpies sent their 2025 first-round pick to Gold Coast last year in a deal that landed them Houston, while Carlton's top pick for this year is with Hawthorn.
