How Does FlyQuest's New Roster Stack Up?
Rebuilding a team is never easy. Replacing former players with others of the same calibre or higher takes a lot of skill and know-how to pull off. This is especially true when rebuilding an entire roster, mostly from scratch, while also taking a few losses financially to do so.
This is exactly what FlyQuest had to do going into the 2021 LCS season. As its 2020 roster moved on to greener pastures, thanks to the team's appearance at Worlds and consecutive second-place playoff finishes, the organisation had the task of recreating that level of success in the off-season.
So, did they bring in the players required to make a similar run again?
Top Lane - A
FlyQuest swung for the fences for its top lane signing, replacing the steady Colin "Solo" Earnest with Cloud9 star Eric "Licorice" Ritchie. This was easily the biggest upgrade for the team in terms of in-game quality and pedigree. Licorice was consistently in the top of half of most top laner statistics last year and has shown the ability to compete at the position in multiple metas. As one of the best domestic players available this off-season, FlyQuest made a huge splash by adding him to their roster.
Jungle - B
The second big surprise from FlyQuest this off-season was the signing of Brandon Joel "Josedeodo" Villegas from Latin America. The Argentinian made some noise at Worlds this year, having some impressive individual performances and highlights from the Chinese super server, but was not as hyped as some other imported players.
Regardless, Josedeodo is definitely a decent signing for a rebuilding team. He is replacing one of the most reliable junglers in the league, but his statistics and playstyle from the LLA do closely mirror that of Lucas "Santorin" Larsen, so he may not be as much of a downgrade as some people may think. Also, Josedeodo is probably not going to demand as much in the way of salary as some other imported, or even domestic, players.
Mid Lane - C
The mid lane is the position where it becomes pretty obvious that the team is in a transition period and is willing to try some things out. Cristian "Palafox" Palafox has come in to replace one of the best players at his position, Tristan "PowerOfEvil" Schrage, who has recently signed with TSM.
The move is definitely in-line with the current shift of thinking in the league to move towards more rookies and Academy players, but it does leave a giant question in terms of quality from the position. Taking a chance on rookies is definitely a necessity for rebuilding a team, but making a smart bet is a must especially at a position as impactful as the mid lane.
Palafox has been one of the best performing mid laners stuck in Academy for a while, and does deserve a shot in the LCS, but this could have been a spot for another import to pair with Josedeodo. A veteran player or proven young talent from another region could have filled this spot nicely.
This is not a bad signing at all, but it definitely could have been better.
Click to enlargeBot Lane - B
The position is hard to grade in a vacuum, especially in the LCS, but Johnson "Johnsun" Nguyen is an interesting prospect in this FlyQuest lineup. He is one in a line of young ADC players that Zaqueri "aphromoo" Black has taken under his wing in recent years and showed some improvement over the course of his season with the veteran.
While he may not have shown some of the highs that fellow ADC rookie Edward "Tactical" Ra had in Team Liquid, he was one of the bright spots in an otherwise dark season for Dignitas. He is by no means an upgrade, or even a sidegrade, from the team’s previous ADC. But, he has shown an ability to play on the LCS stage and at least keep up with the competition. While this may seem like a lukewarm addition, it does pay to have consistency with a chance at some upside in his position, especially as teams are shying away from big signings in the lane.
Support - B
David "Diamond" Bérubé has the potential to be one of the biggest steals of the off-season if his Academy accolades and results are anything to go on. He had been in the Cloud9 organisation for over two years and is just now getting his chance to show what he can do. Replacing a support like Lee "IgNar" Dong-geun, who was the catalyst for a lot of the big wins that FlyQuest’s 2020 roster pulled off, but this signing might be the closest thing to it.
He has finished in the top two spots in LCS Academy every split that he has participated in and has been looking for a shot to break into the league in much the same way that Palafox has. The difference between the two signings is that Diamond has been dominating his lane in Academy consistently and has even beaten up LCS level talent when they make an appearance.
While there is an argument that this is the position where you could put in a veteran support or an imported player to unlock Johnsun the same way aphromoo did, the amount of untapped potential in Diamond is almost too enticing to pass up in spite of that idea.
The Entire FlyQuest Roster - B
As a whole, this team looks really exciting and has a high ceiling, albeit with a pretty low floor as well. Two rookies, a player with one split under his belt, an imported jungler that isn't fluent in English, all led by a young top laner that knows how to win; sounds like a recipe for success - but also failure. This team, like many a rebuild, is going to have some growing pains and may not really click until later into the season. This team could make a run as high as third place and could also bring that organisation back to the dark days of the bottom-half of the league table.
But, besides the high degree of variance, this roster looks like a worthy successor to the one that gave its team its first appearance at the World Championships.
Images via lolesports