pr

starters:

-top dogs-
jake: showed top form in SSD3, builds and play were for the most part very solid, obviously had a great record in 8-3, i think his form will continue in Ekans going into SPL. No real reason to think otherwise. I'll update this if he totally bombs Ekans.

LilyAC: fought through some first-timer problems to amass a great 6-3 record. i think her play for the most part is good enough and her builds are pretty fantastic. always has a good grasp on the meta no matter how it changes. still think Timer is an issue for her, but she's a fantastic LCer. from what I remember, she was Hogg's LCer in SSD and she did well. not much of a chat presence but i wouldnt be surprised to see him get her again.

Pablo: well if he signs up and wants to play, hes an easy LC pick. but you def want someone like trash on the team too to build for him. or at least a good builder.  but i know those two work together really well.

-close seconds-
Luthier: had an up and down SSD. i think hes a good aggressive player, not afraid to pull the trigger, might play a little short sighted at times, but he can also get a great match-up like Lily. in fact, i think he got good MU even vs lily only to get lucked by her. on the other hand, he does sometimes go too hard for match-up and results in some wild or just bad shit. doesnt mean he cant win, but its worth nothing. also from what ik also is very knowledgeable in RU so i think getting him is a good option unless you have must-have players that hate him. hes not a bad kid tho, a little too enthusiastic at times but hes great team presence imo.

trash: he hasnt really played LC super seriously since like LCWC late last year/early this year, but i can see without a doubt that hes enthusiastic about the meta rn and im seeing glimpses of tryhard trash from back when i started playing. if he keeps up the effort going into SPL and has a solid ekans, i can see him doing amazing in SPL. i know he surprisingly ended up with a 5-3 SSD3 record and got at least one win in LC, but i think 1) he was very busy IRL, 2) hated SM LC. I think hes enjoying this meta rn and i expect him to be a great pick if he continues down this path.

**The first four picks above appear to me to be the best picks as of rn**

-great-
Osh: good player, okay builder. obviously put a decent record in SSD3, but got quite a bit lucky in some of his wins. couldve easily gone average or negative if a couple turns went differently. seems like a good team presence from what im seeing. worth nothing he just got tossed by Lycans in Ekans Week 1. i guess we will see how the rest of matches go. hes definitely not a bad pick.
tazz: fantastic builder, good player. very self sufficient and hardly needs help figuring out what he wants to bring to a match. i just feel like he also goes too hard for MU and is often so confident about his team choice/play that i feel like he misses his downfalls. he did only go 4-3 or 4-4 in SSD3 so he didnt have a particularly eye catching run, but i dont think youd be disappointed picking him.
Ninjadog: missed his chance to play SSD3 due to bad draft planning imo. easily should been in the tour. self sufficient good builder/player. doesnt get tilted by consecutive losses and tends to come back on top with a positive record in LCPLs no matter how they start out for him. hes obviously a bit unproven on the big stage but a risk worth taking imo.
Serene Grace: great player, average builder. he clearly showed that he shouldve been in SSD3 in the one LC game he played handily beating London13, but what i noticed about him is that he needs someone to help him build. he often comes up with a cool team or two, maybe 2-3 weeeks in a row, and then starts to run out of ideas. definitely will want support for him, but he deserves a slot in SPL imo.

**Basically difference between great and good is that i just think the players in great would do better than the players in good in SPL or any team tour with LC**

-good-
Heysup: always a solid choice, creative (sometimes too creative) builder esp in early metagame phase. id expect him to at least go even. but if the pool is really good, i see him going just below even.
ZoroDark: idk if he signed up for LC, but ik hes a good player in this tier. you def want a builder for him.
BurntZebra: kinda disappointed in SSD3 going i think 4-5. he got a couple of solid wins, but i felt like he had some game-costing misplays. also felt like his builds didnt quite meet expectations from a duo of BurntZebra + starmaster.
Shrug: had some fun games in SSD3. dont think hes as bad as shake makes him sound lol. i mean i managed him in LCPL8 and he didnt need ghosting thats for sure. when hes on point, he plays at the highest level and makes crazy reads. im not sure how his building is right now as i havent been able to observe him in his ekans team chat. ill update as Ekans goes along. i do think hes a smart player with builds that range in quality. would prob have someone hes friends with in chat working with him.
Toadow: English is terrible. def needs a french goon with him, but i do think hes a great LCer, good builder. can work on his own completely and come out with perfectly fine builds. idk how good he will do on the big stage but he might be a risk worth taking. he had a fantastic LCPL8 going 7-3 or 8-3, one of the best records. also has had solid team tour runs in other LC tours and circuit.

-unsure-
zf: have heard countless great things about zf as an LCer. ik he still plays at least old gens actively. im waiting to see how he does in ekans. he just won Week 1 today against a solid opponent so thats a good sign so far.
Kingler12345: obviously bombed SSD3. def needs building support, but i dont think hes bad  by any means. i just maybe would pick most of the players listed above before him.
mad0ka: doka hasnt played mons in a while, so ill wait to comment on their potential in SPL. doka has always been pretty good in my eyes tho.

-others-
HT: not a bad LC player, but he plays UU better i think? he would need a builder.
tko: well idk what to say about tko. i will update this once i see him play ekans, but i cant tell if hes that enthusiastic about SWSH LC rn. i def seem him tryharding a bit in his team chat tho.
London13: didnt actually play that bad in SSD3 despite going like 1-5. just his building choices are super questionable. youll want a builder if u really want this guy.

-helpers-
Fille: i would list Fille in the good section probably but i just dont think he'll ever be at the level to play SPL. hes a fantastic team presence though and will contribute greatly to LC prep and prob even give solid tests in ever tier.
Plas: i feel similarly about plas except i think plas has better ability to build in more than just LC. I think fille is the better builder tho. i also dont think Plas has signed up yet.
Wabane: solid French LCer and plays OU too i think. anyway i think hed be a solid LC support, not the worst sub.