The son of Marcus and younger brother of Will's AFL destination has been locked in for months - it was just a matter of when a club would bid on the gun midfielder.
But none of Richmond, North Melbourne, Carlton or Adelaide bit - with Ashcroft "a little bit" surprised it took until Melbourne at pick No.5 for a bid to land.
For his competitive side, not being in the first few picks clearly stung.
"You want to be the best and you want to be recognised as the best," he said.
"And I think that I proved that this year, that I was one of the best, if not the best.Â
"So yeah, hopefully I can continue to prove that next year."
When asked if round one was his target, Ashcroft quipped: "Round zero's the target, yep".
"I think any player in this draft wants to be playing from the start.
"I definitely want to be playing from the start and hopefully build really, really nicely into the finals."
Ashcroft, 17, will have to scrap it out for a spot in a star-studded premiership midfield, headlined by Lachie Neale, Josh Dunkley and Hugh McCluggage.
Then there's big brother and Norm Smith Medallist Will.
The "competitive juices" have been flowing since they were kids, while they have been Sandringham Dragons and school footy teammates.
"I had the most fun footy I played in my whole life, where I played with him in the Sandy premiership in 2022," he said.
"We've been competing against each other all our lives, first in the backyard - any sport - it's always good to have a bit of healthy competition.
"But it's going to be nice now to be with him and hopefully build a bit of a dynasty, as you might say, or a good few years with the Lions."
When older brother Will claimed this year's flag, Levi made a point of not touching the premiership cup.
"Obviously, I wasn't a part of the team and wasn't in the team at that point," he said.
"So, yeah, didn't really want to touch it myself, so I can hopefully grab it and have my own one day."
He is confident he can bring a youthful spark, and his fierce competitiveness, to keep the reigning premiers fresh.
And a flag year one?
"That's the goal," he said.
"Hoping flag year one, two, three and four."
14°C