North Melbourne has offered its 2027 first-round selection in a trade for Adelaide defender Nick Murray and the Crows' future second-round pick.
The Kangaroos flagged on Monday that they'd use a future selection, but "not outright", in a deal to lure Murray to Victoria.
"He's still in contract for another couple of years. So to try and get him out of Adelaide, it's probably going to be a little bit tough for us," North Melbourne list boss Brady Rawlings said.
"We've had a couple of chats. Obviously, they've got a bit of a position on where they sit with Butts going out as well.
"We know we're gonna have to put something pretty handy to them to turn their head. We're not gonna muck around. We're gonna put something to them today and see where we go.
"We've had a priority of bringing a key defender this year. We looked at options last year. There was probably no one on the trade market last year to bring in that we thought could help us.
"We think a combination with Nick and Charlie (Comben) could work really well. And we know if we want to bring in a key defender who is contracted, we're gonna have to fork up some value."
North Melbourne's offer, according to AFL Media, will ensure the club holds onto its Pick 5 in this year's draft.
Adelaide list boss Jarryd Roughead said that before the offer came to the Crows' table, it is unlikely the club will entertain an offer for Murray, who is contracted until the end of 2028, especially after the departure of Jordon Butts (Western Bulldogs).
“It's not on us, is it? It's on North Melbourne,” Roughead told reporters on Monday.
“So, out of respect, we'll listen to North Melbourne, but it's going to be quite difficult to entertain an offer.
“Nick understands that he's contracted for two (more) years. He's a great person to have at the footy club, and he understands there's a possibility that he'll come back (to West Lakes).”
