Now, Hawthorn teammate Karl Amon believes it's time the AFL world looked up and started paying more attention to the enigmatic Hawk's on-field brilliance.
Ginnivan was famously on the receiving end of a plane gesture from then-Port Adelaide coach Ken Hinkley after the Power beat the Hawks in last year's semi-final.
He then jokingly returned the favour in a goal celebration against the Power earlier this year.
Last month, he was fined for flipping the middle finger at Adelaide fans after the Hawks' 14-point loss to the Crows at Adelaide Oval, then was later subject to a bizarre door stop from a television journalist at the airport.
But ahead of Friday night's reunion with the Crows, and their faithful, it's Ginnivan's on-field work that has proved particularly eyecatching.
The small forward had three goals and six score involvements in Hawthorn's elimination final win over GWS - with some fun goal celebrations to match.
It gives his Hawthorn teammates plenty of reason to be excited about what the former Magpie can continue to deliver in September.
"Ginni's a character of the game, and we love what he brings," Amon told AAP.
"He cops a lot of attention in the media for what he does outside of footy, but we're solely focused on what he brings on the field. He probably doesn't get enough recognition for what he's done this year.
"Obviously, he had his challenge at the start of the year, and went back to Box Hill. But since he's come back, he's had a tremendous year.
"I feel as though the media don't talk about him as a footballer enough, because he certainly deserves the credits. He's had an amazing year."
Still just 22, Ginnivan has kicked 26 goals in his 18 games since he was dropped - averaging more than 20 disposals and a goal per outing.
He has also averaged a career-high 18.9 disposals this season.
When asked whether Ginnivan had matured on the field, Amon said: "Probably yes and no.
"Ever since he walked in the door, I think everyone knew what he was bringing in.
"He's such a smart footballer and the back half of this year, it's really shown in his game. He's really smart, he works really hard, and he just gets in the right spots at the right time.
"So we always knew what he was bringing to the table and it's good to see that the rest of the footy world is sort of seeing how smart and how good a footballer he is."
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