North Melbourne are entertaining trade offers for star forward Ben Brown, according to AFL journalistย Damian Barrett.
The 27-year old is out of contract at the end of the season but does not qualify for free agency.
Speaking on The Sounding Board podcast, Barrett said that the Roos will test the market value of Brown, something he believes the club should've done with veterans Shaun Higgins and Todd Goldstein.
โWhat they should do is what they should have done last year and when they got offers, good offers, for older players like Shaun Higgins and Todd Goldstein, that was the time to start making decisions, not recontract them for stifling deals,โ Barrett toldย The Sounding Board Podcast.
โTheyโre right to do that, but donโt then now put Ben Brown into the marketplace like theyโre doing.โ
Asked by co-host Craig Hutchison for clarification, Barrett replied: โAbsolutely theyโre shopping (Brown).
โThat doesnโt marry up with the decision to keep Shaun Higgins and Todd Goldstein.
โ(Theyโre shopping him) to the industry. Any club that wants Ben Brown, thereโs a conversation to be had.
โTake that off the headline list, thatโs what happens in footy. Player out of contract, other teams are interested. (North) is open to a conversation. This is what happens in footy.
โ(North is) trying to see what they can get for himโฆ Ultimately there is a draft pick value on Ben Brown in a transaction with another club.โ
Brown has been below his best so far this season, booting seven goals from as many games.
