Grading the teams after #HGC Phase 1 for North America LATE

Yes, I know it's late. It's been a busy week, and I'm not getting paid for this (nor am I looking to be paid to do this; this blog and following NA and EU HGC is a labor of love for the sheer joy that watching pro Heroes of the Storm Matches has brought me). Sorry if you were expecting this last Monday, but if you have paid attention to the blog this long, you know I'm going to be harsh on NA teams.

Now, it's not that NA is bad, it's largely that NA has been inconsistent from top to bottom, and it appears that NA does not have the best grasp on the current meta in the game. With the Western Clash starting on Friday, Team 8, Gale Force eSports, and Tempo Storm all have a lot of work ahead of them if they even want to be competitive against EU.

Quick refresher, here's the grading scale. Remember, a C is actually a GOOD grade:

A: Outstanding, far exceeding average expectations
B: Good, or above average of what was expected
C: Average, performed exactly as expected
D: Below Average, did not to live up to expectations
F: Failure, performed far below average, extreme disappointment of expectations

I'll put them in standing order, not my power ranking order: 

Tempo Storm 6-1 (18-9) - Grade B-: The loss to GFE hurts them, but not nearly as much as their close calls to basement teams like Team Freedom and Naventic. Tempo Storm (as Murloc Geniuses) dominated Fall 2016. Something is really missing here, and they have to find it quick. Team 8 and GFE are hot on their tail, and B-Step is hitting their groove. 

Team 8 6-1 (20-6) - Grade A+: Who saw this coming? They lose their captain, Chu, before the seasons started. They pick up Prismaticism, who was kicked from Superstars. And, they have Glaurung playing Medivh! Team 8 is scary, and right now is the only team that can threaten any of the EU's Big Three. 

Gale Force eSports 5-2 (19-8) - Grade C: What do you say about the team that beat Tempo Storm, but lost to Team Freedom? The C is largely because I expected them to be in 3rd place, and they have not yet had a defining match. This is the team with the most talent, to be sure, but their "four flex and a support" was exploited by Team Freedom. As time goes on, however, expect Michael Udall to have this figured out, and this team may well end on top of NA, for whatever that is worth. 

B-Step 4-3 (15-14) - Grade B: To be honest, I expected B-Step to be at the bottom. They had and lost Glaurung, who I consider to be the best player in NA. Their sponsor dropped them. Much of the meta seems to have passed them by. That they are not only in contention, but looking incredibly strong, should worry the top three in NA. 

Superstars 3-4 (11-14) - Grade C-: Right now, Superstars is right below where I expected them to be, which was fourth place. The core of this team of Srey, Faye, and Iakona is strong, and Goku and Hosty have really helped this team rise from the 7th/8th spot they found themselves in during fall, but they have not been able to put together any consistency. They will look strong and unbeatable in one game, and get crushed the next. The talent is here for Superstars to be a top three team, and other teams have to fear them. It may be only a matter of time before the meta clicks with this team. 

Team Freedom 2-5 (11-18) - Grade D: If I were grading on their match against GFE, B+. If I were grading on their match against previously winless No Tomorrow, F-. This team has shown flashes of brilliance, but the common thread among the bottom three teams is how easily an inconsistent Superstars team dominated them. Team Freedom is safe from the basement, for now, but this team lacks identity and no one (save GFE) feels that they have to prepare for them.

Team Naventic 1-6 (8-20) - Grade F: What happened? Really. I want to know. Naventic was a universal pick for top three. Bkid left GFE to join this team. Aside from a win against No Tomorrow, and a 2-3 loss to Tempo Storm, Naventic has been humiliated by every other team here! In an interview for HGC, Fan (former Naventic player) mentioned that this team has a specific weak link. They had better identify it fast, because the Crucible is warming up, and their name is being called.

No Tomorrow 1-6 (6-19) - Grade F: Is this a pro team or a thrown together team playing Master Level/GM Level Team League? Aside from taking a series against Team Freedom, No Tomorrow looks like a shadow of what they showed in the qualifiers. If they are not careful, they will have to work on qualifying again, because UTA HOTS, current Open Division leaders have stated that No Tomorrow is in their sights for the Crucible. And, to be honest, No Tomorrow has not looked like they belong. 

I have previously called the bottom three in NA the "Oh Somebody Kill Me Please" group. The problem with NA isn't at the top; it's at the bottom. Because there are three NA teams that the top doesn't have to take seriously, NA is woefully unprepared for what is coming in EU. Yes, in EU, Synergy and beGenius have struggled, but they haven't played poorly. Team Freedom, Naventic, and No Tomorrow haven't just played poorly, they have had moments of Bronze level play, which I am very familiar with since I play in Bronze. 

Unless all 8 teams in NA are teams that have to be prepared for and taken seriously, the NA professional Heroes of the Storm Scene will suffer. Blizzard should send all three of the bottom teams to the Crucible, if for no other reason, than to light a fire under their collective asses and wake them up. 

I sincerely hope these teams see this review and get mad. I want them to be good. I want the HGC to succeed. And right now, NA is faltering and looks to be humiliated at the Clash. I only hope I'm wrong.