David King has declared Brisbane is playing the best football of any side in the competition right now as they prepare to face off against reigning premiers Richmond on Friday night.
The Lions have won their last five games, with their most recent victory coming against Gold Coast on Saturday.
King says that even though Melbourne - who remains the only undefeated side - was on top of the ladder, it is the Lions who are in the best form.
“The Lions are flying and playing the best footy in the competition right now,” he said on SEN SA Breakfast.
“There’s no doubt about it, no one is talking about them and I know Melbourne’s profile probably reads better at 9-0, but if you look deeper into how (Brisbane are) playing and scoring, they’re playing the best footy.
“I’m not expecting Richmond to win, but I’m absolutely not fazed about where they’re at.”
Richmond is currently without some of their best players due to injury, with the likes of Trent Cotchin, Dion Prestia, Shane Edwards, Kane Lambert and Shai Bolton on the sidelines.
King said the Tigers were tracking similarly to the trajectory they took in 2019, where they suffered a similar spate of injuries mid-season and then recovered to win the premiership.
“If you have a look at Richmond of 2019, they had six star-factor players on the sidelines and they made a decision as a football club to try and hopefully split the next six rounds and stay afloat,” he said.
“They ended up falling out of the top eight in Round 13 or 14 and they their players started to return and started to get healthy where they challenged their energy in the back half of the season.
“They ended up winning their last nine home and away games and the three finals to win the flag and this season is shaping the same.
“They’ll start getting some players back in the next 2-3 weeks and they’re star factor players, they’re going to come with a rush.”