On April 8, nothing else mattered for the five LCS Members of 100 Thieves except for one thing: Winning.
With a devastating but expected loss to eventual Spring Split champions Cloud9, the Thieves had their eyes set on TSM. Unfortunately, they lost in heartbreaking fashion, despite having a 2-1 lead in the series. Players were sad, quiet, disappointed and above all, dejected. What team wouldn’t be?
Losing is something no one wants to deal with. Everyone wants to be the best. Everyone wants to win. While this may ring true, only one team can win; it simply wasn’t 100 Thieves’ time.
Reflection
While sadness is the kneejerk reaction and understandably so, it isn’t the correct one. When looking back on 100 Thieves’ LCS Spring Split, fans and staff can only be overjoyed.
Coming into the season, the consensus for the Thieves were that they were a 6th/7th fringe team. Some had them as the second-worst team in the league. The signing of Tommy “Ryoma” Le was bashed, with detractors pointing to GM Chris “PapaSmithy” Smith’s OCE bias.
Hindsight is 20/20, and hindsight shows the Thieves made the right choice. Thought to be a development season, 100 Thieves treated spring as a time to train. However, the team progressed much faster than expected, and the team ended up as the third-best team in the regular season.
Not bad for a team that apparently wouldn’t make playoffs.
A Success Nonetheless
Yes, the Thieves didn’t win a series in the playoffs. The Thieves didn’t win the split. They failed to show their full potential. Overall, though? Fans all know the road ahead is a bright one.
100 Thieves shattered all expectations placed on them in the preseason. The development is progressing at a rapid rate, and they don’t expect it to end any time soon. They’ve got the progression, the skill and the overall team chemistry. There’s no reason to think they do not have a chance at making Worlds for the second time in three years.
.
Featured image courtesy of 100 Thieves.
For more 100 Thieves coverage from The Game Haus, check here! 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 Thomas!
“From Our Haus to Yours”