New Feature: Power Rankings - Page 4

On November 22 2006 09:45 Sfydjklm wrote:
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what is the point of this?

I can see now that what I was hoping to save for next month is going to have to come now. A similar write-up will be present with the posting of every list from this point on, but I thought--perhaps--I could get away without posting it to start. Apparently not. So, onward to the justifications...

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IPX - There's just no way to logically consider anyone else the hottest, most dominant player in progaming right now. He's won three of the last four MSLs, and he placed second in the one that he didn't win. Beyond that, he's into the ODT, and I can't even remember the last time he lost in the Proleague.

Anytime - This is a controversial choice, I know. But look at the players Anytime faced in getting to the OSL finals. Then watch his actual play. It's easy to look at the statistics and say, "Yo, Nada won 3-2 and had a better record in the tournament." Anytime faced harder players and displayed a greater degree of skill. If Arkanoid and Peaks weren't practically free wins TvP, I have no doubt that Anytime would have won the OSL with ease. And as an extra little nudge, Lecaf, under Anytime's stellar Proleague record, is current the #1 pro team.

Nada - He won the OSL and defeated both Reach and GoodFriend 3-0 in the weeks leading up to it. But he's just not in the same form as IPX or Anytime.

Midas - His semifinal performances have been lacking, but that doesn't change the fact that, on any given day, he can beat anyone in the world. His 2-3 losses to Anytime and Savior have been heartbreaking, and in both series, he's gone up 2-1, blown a huge game 4 lead, and just collapsed in game 5. If he learns to control his nerves, he'll be at the top of the game.

Sea - This is another controversial pick, but in terms of sheer scariness, no one out there has his combination of macro and multitasking. No one controls battles on multiple fronts while still macroing perfectly as well as Sea—no one. He needs to work on his TvZ, because it’s just not a matchup that lends itself to becoming a macro game, but once he figures that out, he’s going to be even more fearsome than he is already.

GGPlay – Argue with this pick all you want, but GGPlay has shown flat-out amazing ZvT and ZvZ as of late. There’s no shame in losing to Anytime 1-2. He’s also anchored his team in the Proleague for a very long time.

GoRush – Rush’s play in the OSL was strong enough for me to put him here. He advanced into the Ro8, losing 1-2 to Anytime in a series that could have easily gone 2-0 in the other direction.

Bisu – Bisu, while going 3-0 in his OSL group, managed to qualify for the upcoming MSL. A 1-2 loss to GoodFriend just doesn’t mean enough to condemn the fact that Bisu has the most potential of any young Protoss out there. He is without question the strongest player in his ODT group, and I expect him to make it into the OSL with ease.

Nal_Ra – This is my final controversial choice, but I’m going to ask you to cast aside your love for all things cheesy for just a moment and consider a few things: Ra would have been eliminated from his MSL group if Boxer had not had to go into the military. Ra did not make the last OSL. Ra cannot qualify for the coming OSL. KTF is in last place in the Proleague. Making it into the semifinals of the MSL by virtue of a gift and losing 1-3 to Savior is nice and all, but putting him any higher than #9 would be an affront to all the players that have qualified for multiple leagues and actually advanced by virtue of their own merit.

Jju – Jju might irritate me with his inconsistent play, but he is one of the only players to make and advance past the group stages of both Starleagues all while anchoring Khan in the Proleague. That’s enough for me to name him #10.

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Jaedong is not on the list not because I'm unaware of him or because I don't think he's currently on fire. He's not on the list because he hasn't done anything--yet. A bunch of Proleague wins and making an MSL is nice, but it's not enough to warrant placing him among players who have performed well against the very stiffest of competition. If Jaedong makes the OSL and/or wins a few games in a Starleague, that's when I'll say, "Yes, yes, yes," but as of right now, it just feels premature. We all saw what happened with Canata. He made both Starleagues and everyone was hailing him as the second coming of Jesus himself... and then he went 0-3, losing to one member of every race. The same policy of "show me something" applies to Free[gm]. I've got my eye on him, but I need more than a feeling to put him in such elite company.

GF, Iris, July, Zergman, Daezang, and Silver are all close calls, but they just don't quite measure up to the ten players I've selected.

On November 22 2006 18:48 Manifesto7 wrote:
That is because you are a homo that only trolls the forums, and does not read the news or care about the BW scene. Thus, your opinion is noted and disregarded.

For all of you who think you can do better, go scrap it up in the power ranking thread and do better yourself. This column, while perhaps abrasive to some, is sanctioned by the site. Go see if you can do better!