THE LURE of a forward prospect as exciting as Tom Boyd should not be enough to tempt Adelaide into trading Daniel Talia, or so is the opinion of former Crows key defender Rod Jameson.

The Giants are willing to trade what's almost certain to be the first overall pick at the 2013 NAB AFL Draft if the right deal is available, but Jameson says the Crows need another key defender themselves, as well as a ruckman and key forward to really strengthen their list.

"He's our centre-half back at the moment and if you were to trade him, what are you going to replace him with?" Jameson asked.

"You've got a guy [in Talia] who's been on the list for four or five years now and you think some of the benefits you'll reap are not that far away.

"You'd be silly not to look at any deal - you've got the decision to say yes or no -but you'd be silly not to look at it."

But Jameson's opinion on the reigning NAB AFL Rising Star would have reversed had Phil Davis and Nathan Bock not joined the expansion clubs several seasons ago.

Bock signed with Gold Coast in 2010 and Davis with GWS the following season – the same year talented forward Jack Gunston left the club to join Hawthorn.

If Davis and Bock were still playing at West Lakes, Jameson said the option to trade Talia would become much more intriguing.

Jameson was pleased with Talia's progress in recent years, but identified a few areas where work was needed.

"He's certainly developing,” he said. "[But] he tends to lose the body a bit when he's playing in front…that's just time and experience.

"He's more of a negating role than an attacking defender…I'd like to see him run and rebound a little bit more. He tends to handball a lot instead of kick, too.

"I'd like to see some further improvement in him."

The rise of Brad Crouch, rookie Rory Laird and fellow small defender Luke Brown has truly impressed Jameson, as has the return to form by Andy Otten.

He predicted next year could be Ben Rutten's last at the club, reinforcing the importance of Otten, Talia and Kyle Hartigan's continued development.

Harry Thring is a reporter for AFL Media. Follow him on Twitter: @AFL_Harry.