The Adelaide Crows, preparing to enter the 2023 season with one of the youngest playing lists in the competition amid their continued rebuild, are expected to be among the lowliest teams in the league in terms of win-loss ratio.
As senior coach Matthew Nicks ticks over his fourth year at the helm, the Crows' football department has continued to add assets to his youthful squad, the most notable of which being ex-Suns forward Izak Rankine, while also subtracting in the form of Billy Frampton via trade and the retirements of Fischer McAsey and Luke Brown.
Taking into account the aforementioned player movement at West Lakes over the off-season, as well as Jordan Dawson's appointment as the club's new skipper, we present our five burning questions lingering over the Crows' 2023 campaign.
The obvious name that pops to mind when assessing Adelaide's fresh recruits is Izak Rankine, and it's hard to argue that anyone else bests him as it pertains to potential on-field influence.
Crossing over from the Gold Coast Suns in a highly-publicised move during last year's trade period, Rankine will be seeking to prove he is worth the hefty price tag he has appropriately drawn, particularly after it was reported Rankine may be making in excess of $800,000 per season at the Crows.
Representing the Suns in 2022, Rankine's goal assists (1.0) and score involvements (6.2) per game numbers were rated by AFL Stats as elite among players at his position, demonstrating the lethal impact the youngster is sure to make, provided the Crows can get the ball in his hands.
Adelaide also took low-risk-high-reward punts on ex-Pies Mark Keane and Tyler Brown via the Supplemental Selection Period, and while their potential impacts don't come close to what the livewire Rankine was brought to Adelaide to do forward of the ball, they will each be given their chance to prove they still belong on an AFL list.
Following the unprecedented season-long outstanding performance of midfielder Ben Keays in 2022, the question becomes whether a similar breakout campaign could be had by a different Crow this season.
Hard-nosed, tackle-adoring midfielder Sam Berry may be a man worth monitoring as it pertains to that query.
The 21-year-old's average of 9.5 tackles per game last season not only obliterated his own career average of 6.9, but ranked tops in the entire competition, with the next-most frequent tackler being teammate Rory Laird (8.1). Further, Berry's total clearances (4.6 per game) were rated as above average among midfielders, all while he averaged just 73% time-on-ground last season.
Taking into consideration Berry's profound campaign last year and the gradually diminishing careers of fellow midfielders Rory Sloane, who surrendered the club captaincy, and Matt Crouch, the door is well and truly ajar for the 2020 draft pick to step up alongside Laird and Keays as Adelaide's core trio of engine-roomers.
Following the stunning retirement of McAsey, who was trialled as a forward across a number of games throughout the 2020 season but was generally recognised as a key defensive prospect, and the apparent expendability of Frampton, who managed just six senior games in 2022, the Crows' defensive tall stocks are looking slim.
Tom Doedee, Jordon Butts and Nick Murray currently make up the brunt of Adelaide's key defender depth, with father-son draft selection Max Michalanney another who is likely to pave his way in defence as a tall option, and Keane recently swooped on via the SSP.
However, it could be argued that aside from Doedee and Butts, who have proven to be reliable options behind the ball, those other options don't exactly inspire confidence at this point in time, and time will tell regarding whether Crows management made the correct decision in making Frampton available to the Magpies for exchange.
It's fair to say second-year gem Rachele turned heads at West Lakes last year, plying his trade successfully as a small-forward-turned-midfielder during his rookie season and, in doing so, validating Adelaide's selection of the Victorian playmaker with Pick 6 at the 2021 National Draft.
Rachele ranked third among rising-star-eligible players last season in goals per game (1.3) and top-five in score involvements per game (4.5) and marks inside 50 per game (1.1), illuminating the already-damaging impact the youngster makes inside the Crows' forward arc.
While Rachele played generally as a crumbing high-half-forward, the 19-year-old was thrust into the midfield at numerous points throughout the Crows' 2022 campaign and is likely to see his time in the engine room enhanced this upcoming season.
Rachele is on record in January claiming "getting thrown in a few centre bounces, I think that will help", indicating internal discussions have likely been had about making that possibility a reality, particularly amongst one of the weaker midfield groups of the competition.
Dawson, preparing to embark on just his second season at West Lakes, was awarded the club's captaincy after a process that included input from players, coaching staff, and the football department.
While tremendously impressive across the half-backline, as well as in one-on-one duels, throughout his debut season, the ex-Swan had played just 22 games in Crows colours before being ratified as skipper by the higher-ups.
The prominent campaigns Laird, Keays and ruckman Reilly O'Brien had last season, compounded by their lengthier West Lakes tenures, made them prime candidates to succeed the departing Sloane, however, they were overlooked in favour of newcomer Dawson.
Whether or not that decision proves to be a hasty one, time will tell.