Starting over to the pacific league, the San Francisco Shock, owned by NRG Esports owner Andy Miller, will sport one of the few non-Korean teams in the Overwatch League. The Shock virtually have a North American all star team with the addition of two talented Swedish players.
The decision to keep only seven players on the roster with Jay “sinatraa” Won and Matthew “Super“ DeLisi inactive due to age constraints, could be detrimental. Most of the teams in the Overwatch League are keeping eight or nine players, and although it’s a talented North American roster, there’s no clear superstar.
In terms of perception, the Shock will undoubtedly be an underdog in year one. South Korea is the central Overwatch hub of the world, and building a team that consist entirely of Korean foreigners is a gamble. It’s not a bad idea in theory. Trying to grab all the talent outside Korea could payoff, as most teams will focus their energy and money on Korean players.
The few teams in the Overwatch League who built their roster similarly to the Shock will be an interesting experience. Seoul Dynasty’s head coach, Lee “Hocury” Ho-cheol, believes the non-Korean teams are underrated, according to an interview with ESPN Esport. Shanghai Dragons, Florida Mayhem, Dallas Fuel and San Francisco Shock will go down this path.
Here’s the San Francisco Shock organization:
Ownership
NRG Esports is a prominent organization within esports that has had success in many different popular titles: Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, League of Legends, and Rocket League. Andy Miller, NRG’s CEO, and Brett Lautenbach, NRG president, Bowl throw their hat into the Overwatch League and will bring some ownership experience to the OWL.
Management
Andrew “Zwei” Baker takes on the responsibility of building the Shock roster, and on top of bringing on a team of non-Korean players, he signed on Brad Rajani and Dillion “LegitRc” Odeneal to be coaches. Two American born coaches that have familiarity with the players on the roster, and come in with plenty of coaching experience.
However, the front office had some turnover recently when former manager Maxwell “Hoturaz” Bateman was fired for sexual assault allegations. The organization quickly brought in LegitRc to help bring stability to the front office.
Roster
In the hope that the talented Shock roster will individually improve during the season, and surprise the Overwatch world while going through a more strict training and practice regiment. It’s imperative that this team focuses less on winning and more on improving their game.
Unfortunately, two of the more talented players on the roster (Sinatraa and Super) will be inactive. As Overwatch fans saw at Blizzcon, Sinatraa is clearly the key piece to this franchise. Nurture his ability now and he could be a star down the line. The outlook for this team to contend for a title is to focus on winning in year two.
Andre “iddqd” Dahlstrom, DPS/Hit-scan
Favorite heroes: McCree, Tracer, Soldier: 76
Iddqd, the 25-year old, Swedish born, hit-scan main, has proved over and over he’s one of the best McCree’s in the world. His 40% accuracy and damage output is the third highest of any other player on the team.
Furthermore, his aggressive play style and big play potential pairs perfectly with how the rest of the roster looks to play. Iddqd is a lock to be a starter this season. He will more than likely play the long range hit-scan role.
Andrej “Baybay” Francisty, Flex/DPS/ Hit-scan
Favorite heroes: Soldier: 76, Genji, McCree
Baybay was always a player I believed to have the talent to contend with Koreans. While on Kungarna, Baybay was a major part of their success in the Winter Premiere and other major events. Dogman, Baybay’s former teammate agreed
“Baybay was really aggressive, and Kungarna was a team built around Baybay,” Dogman, on the Overwatch podcast.
In any case, Baybay showed plenty of promise, but getting the chance to face the world’s best competition should continue to improve his impressive gameplay. Baybay maintains the most damage on the team, and the second best accuracy. He’s the Shock’s bet Soldier: 76.
David “Nomy” Ramirez, Tank
Favorite Heroes: Reinhardt, Winston
Nomy has consistently been one of North America’s best tanks throughout all of 2017. Nomy was instrumental behind some of the most memorable Immortals run. During the time when triple-Tank was popular, Nomy essentially carried Immortals to many Immortal victories, as the best North American team.
For this reason, Nomy should be one of the leaders of this team and a member of the Shock’s player core moving forward. On top of excellent blocking and positioning, his ultimate effectiveness is incredible. His success rate with earth shatter and ability to turn entire fights is unreal. His bet trait is his survivability with primal rage. Even at a number disadvantage, Nomy consistently keep fight alive with his ultimates.
Daniel “dhaK” Martinez, Support
Favorite Heroes: Lucio
On the negative side, the Shock will run with only two true support mains. Both supports are also hero specialist, and there’s no Mercy-main. dhaK almost exclusively plays Lucio and will be the most crucial player on the backline got San Francisco.
Keep in mind, dhaK is a nice fit alongside a squad that likes to push forward. His Lucio is known to keep the speed boost up while having some of the best wall skating abilities of any Lucio-main. The decision to not run with a consistent Mercy, at this juncture, seems as if it’s a big mistake. Luckily, the two supports might be the perfect match for the tanks and DPS.
Andreas “Nevix” Karlsson, Flex
Favorite Heroes: Genji, Soldier: 76, Ana
Generally speaking, Nevix was always a secret weapon for Misfits. Yes, it helps playing alongside Tviq, but Nevix was the player that pushed them over the top. The potential for triple-DPS compositions with Iddqd, Baybay, and Nevix on the backend could be deadly.
In terms of experience, no other player matches the number of high-level matches played than Nevix. He’s won the most money playing Overwatch on the team, and will be big part of this team’s success heading forward. He will fill into the open flex spot.
Nikola “Sleepy” Andrews, Support
Favorite Heroes: Zenyatta
Sleepy is somewhat of a mystery. He has little to no major experience and is basically exclusively a Zenyatta main. Based on stats, he has low healing and low damage output as well. If there’s one player who could be considered a liability, it’s Sleepy.
Dante “Danteh” Cruz, DPS/Flex
Favorite Heroes: Tracer, Sombra, Genji
The 18-year old, American born Danteh is an intriguing prospect. It’s clear he has talent, but is commitment going to be an issue? No, it’s not, Danteh is focused on Overwatch and becoming the best player possible. Even off the bench, he can have a major impact as a backline disruptor.
As a Tracer, Sombra, and Genji main, he’ll play a big role in changing the momentum of matches. Off the bench, Danteh can make it more difficult on a teams supports and give tanks troubles from behind enemy lines. This will be Danteh’s role this season.
Outlook on the season
It’s a developmental year for the San Francisco Shock. No Sinatraa or Super will force them to focus their contention intentions on season two. The key is develop players like Iddqd, Baybay, and Nomy. It’s important those guys catch up to the Korean level quickly.
After analyzing the roster, it’s clear there’s potential to have a surprise season, but at this juncture it seems unlikely. Players who have never carried teams are now placed into that position. The supports of danK and Sleepy also feel under-researched as the Shock will head I to season one with the worst supports on paper.
Finally, playoffs are in all likelihood out of the question. It has the look of one of the worst roster in the OWL, but don’t be discouraged because certain players could develop into stars. It’s a process and one the fans of San Francisco have to embrace.
You can like The Game Haus on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for more sports and esports articles from other great TGH writers!
To continue enjoying great content from your favorite writers, please contribute to our Patreon account! Every little bit counts. We greatly appreciate all of your amazing support! #TGHPatreon
Featured image courtesy of the San Francisco Shock