What Does the Striker Trade Mean for Boston and San Francisco?

It’s no secret that Nam-joo “Striker” Gwon And Boston Uprising took Overwatch League season one by surprise. It’s also no secret that after multiple reports of internal issues between Striker and Boston Uprising GM Huk, that Striker would eventually be departing. Now it’s official; the San Francisco Shock have acquired Striker from the Boston Uprising. This raises many questions for both of these teams.

Boston Uprising

We’ll start off with the Boston Uprising. There’s no doubt that Boston wouldn’t have made it as far as they did without Striker. His tracer play throughout the season was stupendous and one of the most consistent. With some struggles in stage 4 Striker and Boston still managed to put up a stellar performance against the season 1 finalists Philadelphia Fusion.

With the departure of Striker Boston’s DPS lineup is looking a bit scarce. Recent signings Blasé, former Gladiators Legion, and Colourhex, former Sydney Drop Bears, form Boston’s DPS lineup going into season two. Big shoes need to be filled and it’s tough to say if these guys are up for the task. One good thing Boston has going for them is their track record of signing hidden talent and turning them into superstars. Only time will tell whether or not the move toward a more western roster is the right decision for Boston.

San Francisco Shock

Now on to the San Francisco Shock. Striker would be an amazing addition to any team, that is if his attitude issues were only a product of the environment on Boston. The fact that Crusty Head coached Striker in season one on the Uprising, and is now the Head Coach of San Francisco Shock, makes me think that maybe it was just the environment.

So with that to rest let’s talk a little more about the current DPS situation on the Shock as it’s the exact opposite of Uprising’s. For the second season in a row, Shock is heading into the season with the most DPS players in the league at five. In season one it was impossible for the Shock to give play time to everyone and this lead to a long time pro and fan favorite IDDQD getting perma benched all season. Maybe Shock learned from season one and will manage the DPS line up differently, but it’s going to be tough. Especially if the recipe for success ends up being smaller rosters again. Near the later stages of season one, we started to see top teams in the league running the same 6-7 players. This worries me because the bench can easily end up destroying a players career. For example, IDDQD, Nomy, Avast, Snow, Remix, and many other players who sat on the bench during season one couldn’t even find a team outside of contenders trials and for some of them no team at all. Shock’s DPS lineup is definitely stacked with OWL talent, but for players like Babybay and Sinatraa, it’s going to be hard getting play time over the talented Korean players Striker, Architect, and Rascal.

Final Thoughts

At the end of the day, Striker is a great addition to this team and will bring them great performances in season two. I just hope that the San Francisco Shock will be able to manage their subs better in season two.

Video Analysis

Image Via: Dot Esports