MELBOURNE is drawing inspiration from tennis legend Andre Agassi and NBA champion Giannis Antetokounmpo as they seek to secure the club's first premiership since 1964.
The Demons start finals as premiership favourites, having secured top spot on the ladder courtesy of Max Gawn's after-the-siren goal that delivered an epic final-round win over Geelong.
The minor premiers produced another remarkable turnaround in their regular-season clash with Brisbane, rallying after the Lions dominated the opening half.
Melbourne tackle Brisbane at Adelaide Oval on Saturday night, knowing three more wins will result in their first flag in 57 years.
The Demons' most recent golden era, when Ron Barassi won six premierships in a decade, is almost certain to be a reference in coming weeks.
But coach Simon Goodwin has also turned to other sports while attempting to hammer home the "reset" mantra that has underpinned Melbourne's rise up the ladder in 2021.
"The ability of our club to deal with situations and reset ourselves - whether it be week to week, in game or even in a quarter - is really important," Goodwin said.
"That's our challenge again. This is a new season, new beginning. The opportunity is in front of us but we need to work for it and earn it. We've used a few examples in that space. Andre has been one of those.
"A player who had been at the top of his game for a long, long time and how he broke down his opponent.
"He didn't need to be the best at that tournament. He needed to be the best on that day ... seven times to be champion. He broke it down really simply into sets, games and opponents to win championships."
Goodwin has also cited the example of Antetokounmpo, who stayed the course with Milwaukee in a league renowned for free and frequent player movement, while firing up his charges.
Antetokounmpo, drafted to the Bucks in 2013, was named this year's NBA finals MVP after lifting his franchise to their first title since 1971.
"He saw his journey through at one club and got the ultimate," Goodwin said.
"He's done a few interviews about the ability to continue to push and stay in the moment. Never be satisfied with where he sits, whether it be an individual or team perspective.
"There's lots of little examples like that in world sport you can get hold of. Our players are really captivated by those stories.
"Well continue to look at those examples ... (but) primarily focused on us and how we go about our footy."
Goodwin wouldn't rule out changing a winning side, naming Michael Hibberd, Jake Melksham, Nathan Jones, Neville Jetta and Aaron vandenBerg on a list of players "really pressing for selection".
But he backed key forward Tom McDonald to rediscover his best against the Lions after a "rusty" return last Saturday.
"He's fine ... he just needs another good week of training and he'll be ready to go," Goodwin said.
