This offseason has certainly been an interesting one, to say the least. There are teams that are very clearly in it to win and others that are going for, a “team-building” year. For the orgs that are going more for the “team-building” moves, they won’t be penalized on this list. They have a plan and working with young talent like Cloud9 did in 2018 and other rosters have done in the past does not mean that it is a bad move. What will constitute as a bad move for this list is a player not fitting or there being better options for the type of move the team was making. With that, here are the five worst so far.
5. mithy to Fnatic
There is an argument to be made that the Fnatic roster got better or at least stayed the same with Selfmade coming in to replace Broxah. Whether Broxah will admit it or not, there were clearly some issues as the team looked off all year and now he is the only one leaving. Either way, the team did not complete their goals and often times that can be blamed on the coach. So, making a move in that area would definitely make sense for Fnatic, but bringing in mithy is a huge risk.
There is no doubt that mithy has the mind to be an excellent head coach. The problem is that his first job shouldn’t be with Fnatic. This team is built for Worlds and having an inexperienced coach can cause a multitude of problems. Even if his knowledge translates well, he will still be experiencing firsts in managing which is just as important when coaching. When the first argument breaks out, how will he handle it? Or what if they are struggling, will he be able to help the mental of his players? While he has seen this and maybe even experienced it a little, these are not problems that players have to deal with in regards to the entire team. Fnatic are ready to compete now and that will bring with it a lot of pressure on a first-year head coach. If Fnatic underperform, especially compared to last year, eyes will quickly turn to mithy and he could get scared of coaching ever again which would be the biggest shame of it all.
4. Dignitas Signing Huni
This has been hotly debated amongst many fans since it was reported, by Parkes Ousley of Inven Global, that Dignitas were spending nearly a third of their budget to bring in Huni. Because of this they are struggling to find players to sign with him. Fans cannot blame Huni for this whatsoever. That is not why this move was a bad signing. Huni represented himself well and made a case for why he should be paid as much as he is and the management group agreed to it.
The problem is that they should have potentially filled other positions first or been really confident their other signings would come through. The crazy thing is that even with that report, Dignitas still have roughly two-million dollars to spend and it is hard to think that players wouldn’t sign for at least half a million dollars when so many are complaining that talent isn’t getting picked up. This means either they do not believe in the management group or maybe they just do not want to play with Huni. Either way, Dignitas are in a bind as they spent a lot of money on a player and have no one for him to play with. Now, they will likely be the team that gets young talent and because of that, this was a bad move. They are going from a win-now mentality to having a big signing with a budget roster. This type of move is one that can hurt the org for quite a while.
3. Origen Signing Destiny and 100 Thieves Signing Ry0ma
When looking at the Origen roster, most people would agree that it is solid. Alphari, Xerxe, Nukeduck, Upset and then Destiny, wait, and then Destiny? The signing of the boy from down under has left LEC and Origen fans scratching their heads. He has little international experience and even less success when he has made it to the Worlds stage. Now he will be expected to contend with some of the best talent in the world and need to do so without bringing down what will be one of the top rosters in the LEC. This is a tough task and if he can pull it off it will look like one of the best signings this offseason, but for now, it is one of the worst.
Heading over to 100 Thieves, there is no way they would also bring in an Aussie with little international success, right? Ssumday, Meteos, Ry0ma, CodySun and Stunt. Oh, there is another Australian in what would otherwise be a pretty decent roster. This is not to say that Ry0ma couldn’t surprise everyone and come to the LCS and light it up, it just is not that likely. The team will already be teaching Stunt the ropes of being a full-time LCS starter and now Ry0ma will be going up against the likes of Bjergsen, Jensen, Crown, Nisqy and PowerOfEvil. Like Origen’s signing, should this work, PapaSmithy will look like a big-brained genius.
2. Eika, Altec and sOAZ to Immortals
Immortals started off the offseason by making possibly the best LCS move in winning the battle for Xmithie’s services. Then it seems they had a situation like what Dignitas are in now, Immortals just acted on it quicker. While sOAZ is a bit of a head-scratcher, he still probably has some left in the tank and could be an interesting option. Eika and Altec, on the other hand, are huge question marks.
Eika is a 23-year-old player who has seen a total of 18 stage games and none since the LEC Spring Split in 2016. Not only is he a bit on the older side to have that little amount of experience but, if they were intentionally looking for someone new then why not take one of the NA mids from Scouting Grounds instead of selling the spot? On top of this, they brought in Altec who can’t be one of the best options out there for his price. Not only has he not played in three splits but, he was not even one of the best options when he was playing. The only saving grace for Immortals’ moves after Xmithie is that Hakuho is a pretty good Support.
1. Keith Moving to Support
Either Support mains are being disrespected or Golden Guardians are convinced that converting a player from another position is the way of the future. They tried this with Huhi last season and it worked decently well. He was at least coming from a position that had some champion crossover. Keith, on the other hand, will be trying to go from ADC to Support. Is their plan to have him play Senna every game?
In all seriousness, Keith probably has the mechanics and sure with time, he may become a solid Support. The problem is that there were so many options in Scouting Grounds and across previous LCS talent. Why not bring back Olleh instead? Golden Guardians are not only making a terrible move but they are in a weird position. Hauntzer is still top tier and easily their top-paid player but then they are banking on a young and relatively inexperienced roster. Nothing this team is doing seems to make sense. Well, other than picking up Goldenglue, that was an opportunity that had to happen.
Honorable Mentions
Scouting Grounds Debacle: The LCS held their Scouting Grounds this year, which should continue to be an annual event. The problem is that so far, not a single player who played or who even was drafted is currently signed. NA has to work on their amateur scene and get a system where they can groom players. Otherwise, the region will continue to struggle. The hope is that many of those players will get signed to Academy rosters and then make their way up. If not, then there is something wrong with the overall management in the LCS.
Damonte: Is Damonte the best mid-laner in the LCS? No. Is he better than some of the options that are currently in the LCS? Without a doubt. The fact that this man has not been signed is nearly unacceptable with the way some of these teams are building right now. He should at least get an Academy spot but teams like Dignitas, 100 Thieves and Immortals should be looking hard at Tanner Time.
You can ‘Like’ The Game Haus on Facebook and ‘Follow’ us on Twitter for more sports and esports articles from other great TGH writers along with Robert!
“From Our Haus to Yours”