A horror injury stretch over the past two years has also given the 24-year-old an appreciation for small wins.

He's finding plenty of both on an eye-catching return to the floor over the past month, producing his best performance of the season with 13 points, five rebounds and two steals against Brisbane on Saturday.

He had nine in a single fourth-quarter explosion in an effort to spark his team, showing all the hustle and grit that's made the West Aussie a fan-favourite in Wollongong.

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While a frustrating run on the injury front has tempered some of it on the practice floor, he hasn't entertained any slow-down in live action.

"I thought after this last injury I needed to chill out a little bit, and at practice I relax a little bit [more]," Grida said.

"People are always telling me 'you don't have to win everything at practice' but when the games come, I just do what I do.

"I haven't thought about anything injury-wise once while I've been on the court. It'll never stop me doing what I used to do, jumping over people, trying to get the ball anyway I can.

"That's what I've always done. When I step over that line, I don't even think about it. There's no [on-off] switch."

It could be where the true gain lies in the pain for coach Jacob Jackomas given the currently longest tenured Hawk is locked down long-term.

Having been drip-fed action for a finals-bound outfit on his previous injury return under Brian Goorjian, an overflowing import casualty ward has allowed Grida to average 21 minutes over his last seven games.

It's his most consistent output since a similar run for an injury-ravaged Hawks in 2020, and something he's feeling the benefits of.

"Last time I came back, it was [with] a team heading into the playoffs and it was more just playing a role to get those wins," he said.

"I've got more offensive freedom on this team right now with the import situation so there's more opportunity.

"I probably wouldn't be playing this much if we had our imports here the whole time. That's a silver lining for sure.

"We're down a bunch of imports so [other] people have to make plays. I'm winning every time I step on the floor at this point, so I'm having an absolute blast.

"It's still coming, it's not feeling automatic like it used to, but I'm starting to feel more like myself with each game."

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With skippers Sam Froling and Tyler Harvey also returning next year alongside Wani Swaka Lo Buluk - Grida expects to similarly reap the benefits on the team front.

"It's not a wasted year, we're all getting better, coaches included," Grida said.

"We're all really close, we've been through it together and we're still going to make this year successful however we can.

"I can compare us to Cairns last year. They didn't have a winning season, but they had a lot of young guys who've stuck around, they play super hard and I think that's going to be us.

"We've had a tough one this year but a lot of us have got opportunity and have improved so next year we'll really have a shot at this thing.

"We'll give everything we've got these last three games to finish on a high and, if we keep playing the way we are minus [Saturday] night, we'll get a few of these."

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