From Player to Leader: Puppey’s Advice on How to Make the Transition

The Team Secret captain lays out the roadmap to becoming a true Dota 2 leader

Puppey, one of the most experienced Dota 2 captains still playing, led Team Secret to a 2-0 triumph over Old G in the DPC WEU 2023 Tour 2 Division II. Following a series of roster changes and a disappointing run in Division I, Team Secret has had a turbulent journey leading up to the current tour. They brought in Armel “Armel” Tabios and Daniyal “yamich” Lazebnyy to arrest the slump and also assigned Miroslav “BOOM” Bičan a new role as an offlaner. It appears that Team Secret's gamble has paid off, as they finished at the top of the standings, virtually securing a slot in Division I.

Clement “Puppey” Ivanov was interviewed in the post-match discussion following their victory, and was asked to give his advice to support players who are starting out and those who want to take on leadership roles within their teams. Puppey stressed the value of versatility and perseverance in pursuing one's aspirations to play any role in the game. He name-dropped the legendary Sébastien “Ceb” Debs as an example. 

What Did Puppey Say? 

In response to a question regarding his advice to other players, Puppey said that his answer would vary depending on the player’s age and experience. 

“Well, the thing is, the advice I would give myself at this age right now probably would not be the same as the advice I would give to a young person.”

He brought up Ceb as an example to make his point. 

In my opinion, if you’re young, you should practically be able to play any role pretty okay, you can't just play support and live with it or something like that. You gotta be able to bring everything to the table because you’re young and you’re supposed to be ambitious and you’re not supposed to give up on anything. You might be a support player, but, Ceb was a coach, then became an offlaner, never played offlane I think, mostly played midlane, and became the best offlaner. You should not give up on your dreams of any other role, you shouldn't tunnel vision yourself. Just be free and do whatever you want, don't tunnel vision on anything.”

Puppey's observations in the post-match interview offered valuable insights into what it takes to be a successful player and leader in Dota 2. Puppey's encouragement for young players to be versatile and unwavering in their pursuit of success is inspiring, and his own track record as a veteran player and captain of Team Secret demonstrates the value of perseverance, hard work, and dedication. With a new lineup, Team Secret gears up for Division I in the next tour, and fans can't wait to see what the future holds for Puppey and his squad. With Puppey at the helm, we can count on him playing a crucial role in Team Secret’s future success.