Melbourne list boss Tim Lamb has explained that the Demons aren't pushing anyone out of the club as stars Clayton Oliver and Christian Petracca are set to be traded.
Oliver and Petracca were both in the 2021 premiership-winning team, with the latter winning the Norm Smith Medal for best on ground.
Lamb said the club didn't direct Oliver to look around after a recent meeting the club had with him.
“Out of that has come that he has wanted to explore some options, but it wasn’t a direction from us to do that (telling him to seek a trade)," Lamb said on AFL Trade Radio.
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“From media speculation, it appears like he’s (Oliver) going to potentially move to the Giants.
“We haven’t spoken to the Giants, we haven’t spoken to Clayton, and there still has to be a deal worked out.”
Lamb said that the club has some great players, such as captain Max Gawn, Kysaiah Pickett and Ed Langdon, and was not pushing players out of the club.
“We think we’re in a really good spot. But nobody is being pushed out the door; that’s not the case at all," Lamb said.
“You have to have these mature conversations at this time of year, and the only way to do these things is to work out the best interests of the club at that time, and what can be the best way to build the next premiership list.”
Lamb said the club has had 'preliminary discussions' with Gold Coast, the team Petracca wants to be traded to.
“Really preliminary discussions only at this stage... that would be the best way to describe it," he said.
“We’ve said all along that we love ‘Trac’. He expressed a desire to potentially move somewhere else, and we’ve said we’ll look at something as long as it’s in the best interests of the club."