The best Overwatch League MVP pleas ahead of awards season
The Overwatch League award season is upon us. Between RoleStars, Alarm rookie of the year, Coach of the year, the Dennis Hawelka award, and the regular season MVP, 16 awards are up for grabs.
While a selection of media, broadcast talent, and Overwatch League team representatives make up a lion’s share of the voting power for most awards, the MVP also has a fan vote component worth 25% which is not to be underestimated.
In an effort to garner support from the fans, the finalists for the MVP award have taken the opportunity to garner support from their fans.
Let the campaigns begin
Last week, the Overwatch League announced its ten contestants for the Overwatch League 2023 MVP award.
Stalk3r, Shu, Fielder, Zest, Viol2t, Fearless, Skewed, Mer1t, SOMEONE, and LIP made the final cut, chosen by the Overwatch League teams around the League.
Especially Florida Mayhem tank swiss army knife, Jeong-Wan "SOMEONE" Ham and Atlanta Reign’s Sombra ace, Jae Won "LIP" Lee have distinguished themselves, receiving support form both the community and their teams for their MVP candidacy.
While both the Reign and the Mayhem have other MVP candidates in the race, they both appear to have found their champion, putting their support behind the respective frontrunners.
Both organisations and their staff members have spoken publicly on the qualities of their MVP.
Referencing the close calls LIP has had on becoming the MVP of prior seasons, assistant coach of the Mayhem, Caleb "McGravy" McGarvey wrote: “I think Someone should win MVP this year. Would I be upset if Lip won it? Probably not but if you’re voting on the basis of him “deserving it” because of the past 2-3 years, shame on you. It’s the 2023 MVP not the Hall of Fame.”
Head Coach of the Atlanta Reign Blake "Gator" Scott also weighed in with a Twitter thread pointing out his DPS player's flexibility, intangibles, and proven track record. He stated: “I'll be happy for whoever wins the award as there's some great players in the field, but for me personally my vote goes to LIP.”
The back and forth between the two organisations, their MVP candidates, and their fans has added spice to the debate until voting closes this week.
The front runners’ plea
The front runners themselves have taken to social media to garner support for their MVP campaign.
Calling upon old friends, LIP has taken to the Chinese social media platform Weibo to ask for fan support. The DPS superstar had played for the Shanghai Dragons from season 3 to season 5 of OWL, winning the Grand Finals with the Chinese organisation in season 4 and becoming the finals MVP, losing the regular season MVP to eventual winner Xin “Leave” Huang.
SOMEONE used his team's victory over the fourth-ranked in the North American region, Boston Uprising to ask for community assistance, holding up a note with the message “Vote me 4 MVP!” to the camera.
While the Alarm rookie of the year award is not a fan vote, Toronto Defiant’s and former Dreamers’ Go "Spectra" Dong-woo also used a similar opportunity after his team beat Canadian rivals Vancouver Titans.
Spectra had played for South Korean Contenders team Dreamers which also participated in the Overwatch League under the new format, allowing top Contenders teams to compete against OWL franchises in the APAC region.
In mid-June, he was transferred to the Defiant amidst a mid-season rebuild that aimed to revive the team’s playoff chances.
Award votes are closing soon and only limited time is left for viewers to cast their vote. Head over to OWL’s website and choose your MVP.
