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After a dominant win at the 2019 Overwatch League grand finals, the champions have enjoyed their spoils during the offseason. The San Francisco Shock were nearly unstoppable last season, rolling through teams, taking a stage championship, and developing a rivalry with the Vancouver Titans.
San Francisco’s 2020 forecast is more of the same, considering the team made the bare minimum of changes to their roster and coaching staff. If it isn’t broken, don’t fix it.
Tank
The Shock tank line remains as star-studded as ever. Main tanks Yoo “smurf” Myeong-Hwan and Matthew “Super” DeLisi will likely share stage time throughout the season. Both have their own specialties and playstyles that lend to certain maps or stages. Beyond that, Super always brings the heat and the entertainment for the entire team.
Off-tank Choi “ChoiHyoBin” Hyo-Bin, grand finals MVP, is the sole off-tank for the Shock. If it was anyone else, there would be reason to be concerned, but ChoiHyoBin is arguably the most consistent off-tank in the entire Overwatch League.
Support
San Francisco’s support line is minimal but powerful. Main support and shot caller Grant “Moth” Espe returns alongside expert flex support Park “Viol2t” Min-ki. As the support meta quickly changes amid the looming addition of Hero Pools, Moth and Viol2t will have to flex across the entirety of the support hero roster all by themselves. Though they can probably take on the challenge, the Shock would do well to pick up at least one backup support option.
DPS
Like other teams in the league, the San Francisco Shock are overloaded on DPS players. The difference is that their coaches know what to do with them. Take 2019 Overwatch League MVP Jay “Sinatraa” Won, who ran circles around his counterparts on both Zarya and his signature damage heroes. He’s joined by Park “Architect” Min-ho, who has shown a propensity for absolutely clutch plays.
Hero Pools will deeply benefit Kim “Rascal” Dong-jun, who flexed all the way to support hero Baptiste last year. With knowledge as expansive as his, the team won’t be afraid of any potential bans. Kwon “Striker” Nam-joo will return with his niche set of heroes. While he lacks the depth of Rascal, he brings specialization and dominance. Hitscan DPS Lee “ANS” Seon-chang is the only new player added to the San Francisco Shock this year. The former streamer is a Widowmaker and sniper hero specialist.
2020 outlook
The Shock’s outlook is simple but definitive: They’re going to dominate the league once again. With a roster that showed an impressive ability to flex last season, even when they didn’t necessarily have to, Hero Pools will only benefit these players. Every single possible hero choice is covered by the San Francisco roster. Quite frankly, other teams in the league should be terrified.
The only thing that could stand in the Shock’s way is potential burnout due to travel and practice. A team that prizes victory with a host of competitive, motivated players is the most vulnerable to practice-related issues. These are players that will go back to the drawing board when they should be sleeping. If the exceptional Shock coaching staff can keep track of their flock, dominance should be a given result for the former champions.
San Francisco’s season begins on Feb. 9, when they take on the Dallas Fuel at 6pm CT.
Published: Feb 8, 2020 05:25 pm