Essendon coach Brad Scott has been quizzed on the club's potential interest in West Coast young gun Harley Reid.
Despite having a deal with the Eagles through to the end of next year, trade speculation surrounding the 2023 No.1 pick has been constant as clubs from his home state of Victoria prepare to make a move if he doesn't re-sign.
That interest has started this year, even while Reid is more likely to remain in Perth for the final year of his contract, with circling rivals wanting to be in the mix should he seek a move back to Victoria in 2026.
Essendon look to be one of those clubs, and could be the only club that could satisfy the Eagles in a trade for Reid if one were to occur this year, as the Bombers hold two top six picks for the 2025 draft.
While Reid and his management have given no indication the Tongala product could seek a move as of yet, Scott knows any club keen on remaining in the race for Reid needs to be "in the game".
"I think the simple answer is that there wouldn't be a club in the competition that wouldn't have interest in a player of that calibre," Scott told the ABC on Saturday.
"The reality is, if you're not in the game these days you're out of it.
"My view has always been that players who are contracted to other clubs are committed to that club until they say otherwise.
"I haven't heard anything from Harley's management group that suggests he wants to be anywhere else other than West Coast.
"So until that time comes, we'll respect that. But if there's a time, like any player, that they declare they're on the move, we want to be in the game."
Essendon find themselves out of this year's finals race amid an arduous campaign that has seen half of their best 23 players currently sidelined with injury.
The Bombers find themselves in the middle pack of the competition, yet to enter premiership contention but are breaking away from clubs entrenched in a list rebuild.
Deciding to hold their draft picks or use them to lure a "big fish" will be considered at Tullamarine, but Scott has hinted he's often in favour of looking to the future.
"I'm biased towards building teams rather than buying them," he added.
"I love investing in the draft and investing in young players. I'm conscious that our club is in a difficult position, partly because we did go hunting for big fish previously.
"We need to build a really solid base of good quality players before we're looking for the one-player solution."
The Bombers hold Picks 5, 6, 22 and 23 for this year's draft, having attained Melbourne's first-round pick and St Kilda's second selection last year.
Essendon have a pair of promising prospects from their Next Generation Academy who are eligible for the 2025 draft in Hussien El Achkar and Adam Sweid, who are both potential first-round picks.
