Gold Coast gun Ben King is set to nominate Hawthorn as his preferred destination, exercising his free agency rights.
Six Points co-host Mark Stevens said earlier in the week King would be out the Suns' doors, taking up an opportunity elsewhere.
"Who would you prefer? Ben King or Mitch Lewis?" Stevens posed.
"My info is King is definitely out of the Gold Coast. It's just a matter of where he goes. They're different players. Mitch Lewis is harder at it, probably more team-based, more strings to his bow. But King's got more x-factor and rips a game apart."
Recent reports have indicated King will reject the Suns' long-term offer and put pen to paper on a six-year deal at the Hawks. It's a stunning turnaround given his desire was initially to stay in Queensland earlier in the year.
King's reported new deal will take him until the end of 2032.
The Suns have lost the past eight matches and were early premiership favourites, but now have been bundled out of the top 10.
Given King's restricted free agency status, the Suns have the right to match any bid made by Hawthorn or other rivals, which would ultimately force a trade.
The Hawks would prefer Gold Coast not to match a bid given their interest in Essendon's Zach Merrett, which will require a trade given he is contracted until the end of 2027 at the Bombers.
King's suspected arrival will cause a front-half squeeze, which has resulted in rival interest for unrestricted free agent Mitch Lewis.
Hawthorn will need to make contract decisions on Lewis, as well as Calsher Dear, Jack Gunston and Will McCabe as key forward stocks, whilst also negotiating King.
As for Gold Coast, it would be a major blow to the club, who have worked incredibly hard to retain their star talent. Over the years, they've lost Tom Lynch, Dion Prestia, Josh Caddy, Steven May, Jack Lukosius, Ben Ainsworth, Jack Martin and Charlie Dixon to rival clubs.
They managed to keep star midfielder Matt Rowell for two years last year, but he comes out of contract next year, with Victorian clubs set to renew their interest.
