With Round 1 underway, it’s a great opportunity to take a look at the field and for some of us to give you our personal projections on who will make it to Day 2. There are plenty of outstanding duelists here today, but everyone’s got their hunches and their personal favorites. With that said, here are my top picks for today!
#1: Anthony Alvarado. The Big Shark himself is here today, armed and ready for the biggest battle of the year. With their new acquisitions Team Overdose is perhaps stronger than it’s ever been, and though they might be missing a bit of the familiarity that teammates like the absent Rhymus Lizo, Bryan Coronel, and Jerry Wang bring, the amount of raw talent that they’ve got going for them has to be respected. In my mind, while it’s a team of champions, the greatest on the list is Anthony. With a 2005 Shonen Jump title under his belt, a massive victory at last year’s East Coast versus West Coast showdown, and three Shonen Jump Top 8 finishes, he’s got the experience, the stamina, and the moral support from the sidelines that make a National Champion.
#2: Carlos Santiago. After going through plenty of drama with the breakup of Team Scoop, Santiago is still at the top of his game. A fourth Shonen Jump Top 8 showing in Columbus has made him one of an elite club of legends, earning him bragging rights that only a handful of duelists can claim. With a tenacious, resilient attitude and a willingness to explore and run tech that others wouldn’t risk in a high-competition environment, he’s got all the qualities that a duelist needs to make Day 2 here this weekend and have fun doing it. Nothing gets Santiago down, he’s unsinkable, and that’s exactly what a duelist needs in a stressful, intense tournament like this one.
#3: Wilson Luc. How could I not include Mr. Shonen Jump? The tournament’s in his backyard, Comic Odyssey has some stellar decks for today that build on the themes that were explored in Chicago, and Luc has been on the comeback path all year long. After chasing the record of teammate Theeresak Poonsombat for months, Luc dropped off the Top 8 map for the entire past season. If it hadn’t been for Brent Yetter knocking him off of the bubble in Baltimore, he would have finally had his long-elusive fifth Shonen Jump Top 8 finish months ago. Luc did in months what other duelists have taken years to accomplish. He deserves respect, and this weekend he may just get it.
#4: Shane Scurry. After not being able to make Shonen Jump Chicago due to private obligations, Scurry is back in competition with what might be one of the best decks of the weekend. While Team Overdose isn’t renowned for their innovative deck building, the acquisition of Shane Scurry may change all that. Fired up after feeling slated over the lack of credit for the deck he contributed to Edgar Flores for Chicago, the Shonen Jump champ of Baltimore is ready to show yet again why he’s one of the deadliest strategists this game has to offer. He’s motivated, focused, and ready.
#5: Emon Ghaneian. All “selling himself on eBay” jokes aside, one probably can’t argue the statement that Emon is a strong candidate for player of the year. With three Top 8s and two in the current season, he’s managed to win two Des Volstgalphs, one Shrink, and one Shonen Jump Championship title in less than eight months. Having known Emon since the beginning of the Shonen Jump Championship circuit, I can say that the past year has been one of incredible personal growth for the Naruto-turned-Overdose superstar. One of the first duelists to harness the power of raw aggression in the current format, he knows what it takes to be a champion, and now he’s got one of the best teams backing him up.
#6: Jonathan Labounty. After making it to the quarterfinals of last year’s National Championship, Jon Labounty is back, and he’s my only pick for a return trip to Sunday this year. In better playing shape than he has perhaps ever been, and supported by the newly-reduxed Team Rampage, he’s the group’s hottest property, alongside Brent Yetter and Nareg Torossian. While it’s currently unconfirmed whether or not he decided to go through with running the innovative Machine Cosmos deck he spoke of at Chicago, he’s a strong bet either way.
#7: Jae Kim. Love him or hate him, Jae Kim is one of the best players for duels that involve other good players. Jae’s quirky, deeply cerebral play style allows him to completely side step the logic of other veteran players, usually giving him victories over major duelists but often losses to relative unknowns. There are no beginners here, though: it’s a field of more than 350 experienced, honed, champion-level competitors, and that’s exactly the kind of environment that Jae thrives in. Packing Creature Swap (a hot, hot card today) and some high-utility tech, he’s in his element, and his old support network, Team Savage, is back together competing today.
#8: Nareg Torossian. The eighth slot is always difficult, and Richard Treadwell, Kirk Leonhardt, and Kris Perovic came to mind immediately. But Torossian has gone from the status of a supposed fluke champion to a proven, on-circuit competitor putting in plenty of showings at Shonen Jump Championships. Say what you want about his victory at last year’s Shonen Jump Indianapolis—a win’s a win, and he’s a totally different duelist now. Aligned with Team Rampage and benefiting from their incredible amount of intellectual resources, as well as his own talent, he might not be an obvious pick. That doesn’t stop him from being completely deserving of a Top 8 spot tomorrow though, and if he can make it to Sunday, he might pull a huge upset.
That’s the Top 8 in my mind! I’m pretty sure that Kris Perovic is going to be following me around all day hounding me for my decisions, and perhaps deservedly. It’ll be interesting to see how everything plays out, and which of our predictions come true!
Be sure to check out Mike Rosenberg’s Top 8 picks as well!