One of the teams that has made a seismic impact thus far in Stage 4 of the Overwatch League is the San Francisco Shock. With a stable roster, the San Francisco Shock’s young talent is finally coming to fruition. Although the Shock can’t qualify for the Postseason Playoffs, they are still looking to finish strong and compete in the Stage 4 Playoffs. The Shock are currently in fifth place in Stage 4 with a 4-3 record. They have lost a few close games against high tier teams such as the LA Gladiators, London Spitfire and Philadelphia Fusion. Nevertheless, the Shock have shown that they can play against the best and that their young roster is hungry for wins.
Why is this the Shock’s Time?
Prior to Stage 4, in the first two stages of the Overwatch League, the San Francisco Shock struggled to find a working roster. Their initial plan was to have a bunch of young players who had some of the best talent in the world playing together. However, due to age restrictions rules and visa issues, more than half of their team couldn’t play until the later parts of the Overwatch League. After a rough first two stages, finishing near the bottom of the standings, the Shock finally could look forward to doing well in the League. In Stage 3 and 4, the Shock really picked up their play.
Players Stepping Up
One of the players that really changed how the Shock played was Dante “Danteh” Cruz. Danteh could flex onto several different heroes, but he was most influential when on Sombra. Danteh had a knack for finding the enemy supports and eliminating them. In addition, Danteh would nearly always find a good hack onto an enemy. And although Danteh doesn’t start for the Shock anymore, he is a great utility player, has helped the Shock through their rough patches and get them to where they’re at now.
Another major player who has helped propel the Shock in Stage 3 and Stage 4 is Minho “Architect” Park. Architect has raw talent. He is a dominate force on any hero that he plays. Architect is known for his stellar Genji and Widowmaker play. In addition, Architect is one of the streakier players in the Overwatch League. It is not uncommon to see Architect’s name multiple times in the kill feed. When Architect comes on stage, expect to see some big plays. The clip below shows just how good Architect can be when he is feeling it.
😭@Shock_Architect please! #OWL2018https://t.co/U6dIipgQGs pic.twitter.com/QqKQdLxDuq
— Overwatch League (@overwatchleague) May 26, 2018
A New Coming
Now that all the San Francisco Shock’s young players can play, they have a promising future ahead of them. With stars like Minho “Architect” Park, Jay “Sinatraa” Won, Matthew “Super” DeLisi, and Hyo-Bin “Choihyobin” Choi, this roster is stacked with young talent. The Shock are an exciting team to watch, due to their aggressive and confident playstyle, so watch them carefully near the end of Stage 4. This young roster also has a big challenge in their next two games, where they face the Los Angeles Valiant and New York Excelsior. Will the San Francisco Shock be able to beat two tough veteran teams or will their youth and inexperience cost them making the Stage 4 Playoffs? To find out if the San Francisco Shock can win, tune into the two final weeks of Stage 4 of the Overwatch League.
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Featured Image Credit: Blizzard Entertainment/Overwatch
