The Shanghai Dragons are one of three teams without a single win yet in Overwatch League.
Their poor performance across week one and week two of the inaugural season has landed Shanghai Dragons at the very bottom of the rankings—and it’s clear that it’s starting to affect the team. The team’s manager, Yang Van, issued a statement on Twitter to discuss the team’s problems across their first three matches.
“We recognize our problems, disadvantages, and current status of Shanghai Dragons,” he wrote. “In the meantime, we appreciate all the suggestions from Overwatch players, and we need time and space to tackle these problems. Accordingly, we will focus on our teamwork, contrapuntally training on all positions, game strategy execution and planning, mentality adjustment of our players, and in-game communication.”
Player mentality is a huge problem for the team and will be addressed with a higher priority, Van said. Overwatch fans on Reddit have expressed concern for the team’s mental stability, as the Dragons practice schedule was rumored to be grueling, 15-hour affairs. Van confirmed long training hours—from 10:30am to midnight—but noted that it’s not just sitting in front of a computer screen. The team takes breaks for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
“We also recognized that there is a lack of time for physical exercise and entertainment in our current training schedule,” Van said. “However, we are planning them and we will share with you when more news is available.”
Burnout appears to be a very real problem for the Dragons—without variety, Shanghai faces long-term problems.
Shanghai will face Florida Mayhem at 9pm ET on Jan. 19.
