The unfortunate truth about standings is that someone must always be at the bottom of them. Things have been looking dire for the #19 Washington Justice for some time now, and nothing about their upcoming schedule is any easier. Weeks 3 and 4, at least, have a single game each, giving Washington more time to prepare for each opponent. Only time will tell if that will be enough to iron out the problems that have plagued them all season.
Week 2 in Review
Hangzhou Spark 3 – Washington Justice 0
Washington’s first game of the week was a loss, but not as bad of one as it could have been. While they never won a point on Ilios, they retook control in overtime in both rounds. Paris was promising as well, with the Justice coming within 30 seconds of a full hold. Then on the attack round, Hyang Gi “Sansam” Kim and Yeonjun “ArK” Hong joined forces for a beautiful three-kill Self-Destruct that earned them the first point.
Los Angeles Gladiators 4 – Washington Justice 0
Sunday’s 0-4 loss to the Gladiators had its moments of promise as well. The Justice nearly took the first round of Nepal, only losing point control in overtime. Washington’s defense on Numbani was spectacular, with Los Angeles barely edging the payload around the first corner. While they took two hard losses in Week 2, the Justice continued to prove that they do have the skill necessary to play good Overwatch. The problem remains in execution.
Week 3
London Spitfire (11-6)
The reigning champions of the Overwatch League have had a tempestuous 2019. However, they’re still at a comfortable fifth place in the overall standings. They’ve taken down some big names, but both of their wins this stage were against fairly weak opponents in Toronto and Boston. Their one loss, meanwhile, was to the New York Excelsior — who they’re also playing this week, the day before their game against Washington.
That’s going to be the key to any success the Justice have. If the Spitfire are focused on preparing for their rematch against the legendary NYXL, they may have little energy to spend on a team that’s so much weaker on paper. However, a lack of preparation on London’s part won’t be enough to secure a win on its own. The Justice will have to develop the coordination that they’ve lacked all season in order to capitalize on any weakness the Spitfire show.
Prediction: Spitfire 3-1 Justice
Player to Watch: Junhwa “Janus” Song
Janus’ hot and cold performance has been the bane of Washington’s season so far. It’s hard to place the blame squarely on his shoulders — after all, a somewhat reckless main tank with a team that commits to playing behind him is currently 18-0 in the regular season. While Janus playing more conservatively may help the Justice in the long run, so might the rest of the team acting decisively on his pushes. Either way, this disconnect between the main tank and the rest of the team has made Washington easy pickings for the rest of the League. It’s not necessarily his own play that makes Janus the linchpin for the Justice, but his cohesion with his teammates, or lack thereof.
Follow Rainee on Twitter @Jezi_Belle for your daily dose of bad puns and emotional over-investment in Overwatch League and its players.
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