NLTP A-Team Eastern Matchup Previews
by Elegant
Blockwork Orange Projected Lineup Offense: Dance and Steez
Defense: NotEvenMex and Papajohn
Entering its second season, Blockwork Orange has high expectations to live up to after a rather successful debut season. In an attempt to do so, Dance and FLY have drafted an A-Team with half experience, half potential, and chemistry to boot. ¾ members of the A Team play together on USC Team Cleffer FC.
Dance will be looking to make it known that it wasn’t just his personality that kept him in minor’s for most of his TP career. A reliable holder, he consistently performs well whenever he plays. He may not have the flashy jukes of other offenders in the league, but can be looked at as the more stable member of the offense, offering the perfect amount of support for his jukey partner steez. Though he’s played a minimal amount of minutes in past seasons, this is basically his rookie season. He quickly made a name for himself in NLTP tryouts and in pubs, with a high win percentage. With slippery jukes, steez can easily find himself on a roll, posing a challenge for the defense of Balladega Nights.
On defense, Blockwork has brought back s5 defender, NotEvenMex. In his single A Team match last season, Mex received the 10 D GASP, an impressive debut. However, with Mex, it’s impossible to decide whether you’ll be seeing a 24 return or a 6 return game. Minimizing the mistakes that Mex may make is Papa John, a decidedly consistent defender. Much like Dance, he consistently puts forward solid numbers.Though the two defenders may be lacking the experience of others on the map, talent should certainly keep things close on the defensive maps of Boombox and Iron.
Balladega Nights Projected Lineup Offense: Tantrew, Randy Marsh, or solfDefense: Devious, popsic, or JubJubs
The question after JBB’s draft wasn’t whether he had talented players, but whether he had dedicated ones - Who knows who will show up on the map on Tuesday, and whether they’ll have enough cohesion. (nolies I don’t know enough about this team. sorry fam)
On offense, BDN has a trio of former minors players to choose from. After captaining RHCP last season, Tantrew will be looking to lead his team on the map. While he can be good at times, he played average last season on a below-average minors team. Randy Marsh is in my opinion the stronger of the two, though I’m not sure how active he’ll wind up being this season. On paper, this offense should be good, but in reality, I could foresee some issues in terms of finding offensive chemistry and falling into team roles.
An experienced offense is complemented with a somewhat up and coming but questionable defense. Devious consistently performs well and is continuously improving as a player. With a stint of captaining a miniseason team, he’s had the opportunity to grow as a player during the offseason, and should fit nicely on A-Team. I’m a bit unaware of what’s going on with their second position. Popsic was a fellow member of the RHCP team last season, but with minimal minutes. in both S5 and S4. While it’s possible that he could work well with Devious, the defense doesn’t pose the same threat as the team’s offense. Jubjubs is another option, with impressive performances last season when called upon.
PredictionsAdele is going to wind up with so many Grammy nominations and awards this year. Can't predict this one cause Blockwork is my bae.
Matchup 2: Soviet Ballers vs. Block the Capsbah
Soviet Ballers Projected Lineup Offense: #Frozen and JukesOfHazard
Defense: Fozzy and Willie
#Frozen has put together a nice mixture of experience and youth, allowing for a squad that could go either way.
I have mixed feelings about this offense. #Frozen is returning to his second season as a captain of sorts, after strong late performances by the S5 Soviets. I’ve personally always thought #Frozen was a better defender than offender, though he’s comfortable on both sides of the map. I don’t doubt that he’ll perform well, just how well he’ll do, and how often. He’s partnered himself with JukesOfHazard, one of the rotational offenders The Lion Ping tried out last season. Based on my perceptions of him so far, I think he’ll have a strong S6 in a more aggressive role, that Frozen should be able to complement nicely..
A defense led by Fozzy is a defense that will provide any offense challenges. He had a rather strong minors performance S8 on SBG, and his unfortunate drop provides a fantastic opportunity for the Soviets. His experience and guidance will work wonderfully with his partner, Willie. Willie had a strong S5 performance on the Soviets B Team, and continued to develop over the offseason - but I don’t believe he’s done doing so, and we’ll see strong numbers from him over the season.
Block the Capsbah Projected Lineup Offense: Allegiant. and CrossoverDefense: Doris and TurdFerguson
I personally believe this is one of the least “flashy” teams in the league - although that means little when it comes to their actual performance. With four standout players middling novice teams of S5, the right amount of teamwork could allow them to surpass others. My main concern regarding this team is activity - is Crossover alive? I also haven’t seen too many of them on at a time, but I may just be blind. A lack of Crossover results in a struggle to find a second top O.
The offense of Allegiant and Crossover can be super jukey, but inconsistent. While Allegiant performed well despite his RektRollers team last season, he needs to work on his decision making in order to capitalize on his movements on the map. Crossover steadily made a name for himself as the season went on, although he could be slightly grabby. If this offense can minimize its grabs, with one falling into a more supportive role, and improve on its decisions, there is a pathway for a multitude of caps.
Doris and TurdFerguson both performed well in S5, on play-off contending teams. Doris can play aggressively at times, but consistently finds the return. TurdFerguson switched coasts this season after a successful run on TNW. While I think he’ll continue to do well, especially alongside Doris, I think their success is dependent upon a cooperative offense that can aid them on the other side of the map.
Predictions
Defensively, Soviets have the advantage. On the offensive side, things could go either way, especially on the maps in play this week. While the stronger offense will result in the victory this week, a dominant performance by the Soviets defense may aid in a win. While I’m tempted to say BTC may grab a game, we’ll go with a Soviet sweep.
Matchup 3: Whitecaps vs Balls on Parade
Whitecaps Projected Lineup Offense: Acapuck and Ball Murray.
Defense: H.D and True North
The question for me is not whether the Whitecaps roster is talented - it’s moreso whether the right players are playing in the right places. If things don’t work out, the WC have a deep roster to test things out.
Despite a solid performance by Ball Murray. last season on The Lion Ping, Acapuck will probably be the reason if the team contends. Though both are solid players, I’m unsure whether both will be able to shine against some of the strong defenses the other teams offer. Look for Ball to provide a consistent presence on the other side of the map, providing the support and positioning that allows an offense to succeed. While there’s no doubt his s5 performance proves he has the ability to score, an aggressive performance by Acapuck could help move the team forward. His s5 performance helped lead the WC to be a top playoff team as a leader in caps. He
H.D was one of the few RektRollers to survive the NLTP draft, Though his former team had some issues, one constant I’ve noticed in many of the players is strong communication, perhaps due to VetDave’s coaching. Communication will be needed, with a micless True North as a partner. While H.D performed admirably under a difficult situation last season, it remains to be seen whether his experience will allow him to put forward a strong performance. True North is a talented flex player, and he certainly has a strong use of macros to make up for his lack of a mic. With chemistry and activity, the two could ultimately work together well, as they both seem to have a ceiling they just haven’t yet reached. Perhaps the advantage of defensive maps this week will provide them with an extra boost.
Balls on Parade Projected Lineup Offense: yearofme and Lou WilliamsDefense: Tonto and SassMonster
After taking a break for a while, yearofme is looking to make a return to competitive play. Taking a role on the S5 winning team CREAM, he’ll look to build on the momentum while he’s actually playing. His performance thus far has showed he’s still good. Along his side will be Lou Williams, formerly demman32. He may have been on BNB last season, but he’ll be able to perform well in NLTP. The experience and mechanical skills for both are present, so assuming that the two can work on falling into roles, they should be a formidable offense.
I’m excited to see what the combination of Tonto and SassMonster can do on defense. Tonto is moving up from a performance on The Harry Poppers last season, and has been demonstrating her worth as an a-team defender throughout the past few weeks. She fits into a conservative support defender well, with minimal mistakes. If SassMonster can serve as a more aggressive defender for Tonto, I believe the two can form a nice partnership, one that will be perfect for their offensive counterparts.
Predictions
I think for the first week, Balls on Parade has the advantage on both sides of the map. While I wouldn’t be surprised for Whitecaps to keep it close a half or two, BOP will sweep. The experience of their offense coupled with a wellformed defensive partnership will prove the advantage over the WC. The WC have been quite active over the past couple of weeks, which could narrow the scorelines.
Matchup 4: ThunderCaps vs Gate Registration
ThunderCaps Projected Lineup Offense: d0pe and THE DOT
Defense: honeybear and Gargantua
I’m not sure which circlejerk is worst : the “ThunderCaps has an attitude issue” or the “Thundercaps is #TeamPersonality” (snarff). Nevertheless, SpaceTiger has drafted a team of arguably somewhat talented players that could quickly become a contender, if the pre-season tourney is to be relied on.
Prior to being called-up to minors, d0pe had fairly steady performances last season, As an offender, it does seem that he plays in the more aggressive role, although he does maintain a good control on powerups. With THE DOT at his side, he may need to fall into a more supportive role, with DOT’s performance last season showing he could hold, juke, and cap with no end in sight. With chemistry developed, and with d0pe minimizing the amount of times he curses at himself, this could easily be a top offense.
The defense is anchored by a pair of experienced vets. Honeybear switches over to defense after previous stints on offense. I personally believe his talent on defense leaves more to be desired, as is the case with many players who switch positions. However, he does offer the experience, game sense, and communications that can help his team succeed. His experience in the upper leagues on offense give him the abilities to compete with others on the map. It seems as though Gargantua will be the better of the two, with the comfort in the position and arguable chemistry with his offense from their co-captaincy last season. With ¾ of their A team being former captains, there’s certainly knowledge to the game present. As long as their defense puts forward a normal performance, their offense will lead them forward.
Gate Registration Projected Lineup Offense: Beast Mode and DestarDefense: FuzzyWuzzy and Opponent
If GR can be as good as they think their memes are, we’re looking at a NuperBall champion here. But with three members being on a winning miniseason team, perhaps some chemistry on the map can help this team moving forward.
An offense of Beast Mode and Destar isn’t exactly intimidating, but certainly isn’t unimpressive. Beast Mode’s mechanical skills aren’t the best in the league, but he does maintain good positioning with generally good game awareness. His partner, Destar, put forward okay numbers on a middling Cheech and Chong last season, but apparently seems to have hype (I don’t know who he is, sorrynotsorry.) I do think the two will work comfortably together on offense, and with the right amount of chemistry, can make up for any other disadvantage.
I’m a bit more positive about this team’s defense - Two talented B-Teamers from last season with a great deal of room to stand out. Fuzzywuzzy can play well all-around, whether it be as support or aggressor. Partnered with him is Opponent, coming off both a S5 and 5.5 B team championship - one in which partnered with Fuzzy. Together, the two should comfortably work together on most maps and pose a challenge for pretty much any offensive duo. With two defensive maps in play this week, they should be able to keep it close with an added strong defensive performance
Predictions
While TC has the offensive advantage, I personally feel GR’s defense might do better. I think GR will keep things close on Boomxbox, but ultimately TC will pull it off just due to a stronger overall performance on both sides of the map. TC’s offense will then have a bit more room for action on Iron, resulting in a more comfortable win.