What Ghost and Rahul alluded to the last 24 hours is there are rumours of a downgrade trade with the expansion clubs. We will still draft in the top 10 but have a pick in the teens for Carlisle whilst also giving up our second. The hope is matho lasts until this pick
What about our two years 2nd rounders to Essendon? If they also happen to get Melbourne's pick 25 for Melksham, that would leave them with picks 23, 24 and 25 this year and with two 2nd rounders in next year's draft.
They could do a hell of a lot with those picks with teams like GWS, Brisbane and Sydney needing points for their academy selections (including GWS needing more for next year) and likely to have a shit-tonne of picks between them, after trading out the likes of Treloar, Redden, Luenberger, and maybe McCarthy and Aish!
Essendon could do a hell of a lot of damage with picks 4, 23, 24, 25 and those two 2nd rounders next year and two 2nd rounders alone are worth more points than GWS's current pick 9, so they could easily enough get their hands on that pick for a start. Trade another couple of those picks for a teens pick and all of a sudden they have picks 4, 9 and 15ish and they're in business.
Alternatively, if GWS get Collingwood's pick 7 for Treloar, they would have 7 and 9 and then maybe Freo's first rounder for McCarthy, so Essendon could even trade 4 and one or two of their later picks for 7, 9 and 15ish and another couple of their 2nd rounders for Sydney's 15ish, leaving them with 7, 9, 15 and 16 or so. I reckon it would be pretty hard for them to complain about that. The good thing about that too is that with GWS then having pick 4, they'll almost certainly have to give that pick up for Hopper, so they won't be using that pick as a "live pick", which means Essendon would still be a decent chance of landing whoever they were going to take at 4 at 7 and it also means we could get one of the top 4 (excluding academy picks) with pick 5.
Unless we really want to, I don't see why we should have to give up 5. We just need to get creative with all these picks the teams with academies are going to have and to ensure Essendon are going to be able to do a deal or two with them. Then everyone's happy.