SPL XVI Pre-Tournament Series: The Best Managers in SPL History

By -Tsunami-. Released:2024/12/28.

Throughout SPL's history, many managers have tried their hardest to create rosters worthy of claiming the title of SPL Champion. However, there are certainly far more mediocre-to-awful managers than there are good ones. While creating a good atmosphere and providing valuable support is important, drafting is the #1 skill a manager must have in order to succeed. Many managers have tried and failed in this area, and it is generally what separates the good managers from the bad ones. It is possible to make the draft process easier for oneself, though, by retaining past players. The retain rules were far laxer in the past than they are now now, making one's ability to draft even more paramount in the modern era. Some individuals on this list succeeded in the distant past, while others attained glory far more recently. Of course, it is impossible to know the inner workings of each and every SPL team that has existed in the past 15 seasons, so it is not possible to ascertain the exact contributions of each and every manager. In general, managers were assessed based on their resume of playoff success, or lack thereof, as well as their own individual contributions to each team when that information was available.

10

makiri (4/6 playoffs, 3 finals, 3 trophies)

One needs to only glance at makiri's statistics to ascertain why he is on this list. A staple of the Stark Sharks, makiri was one of the managers on the team every year from SPL II to SPL VIII. makiri's Sharks would miss the playoffs only twice in those 7 years. His first trophy came in SPL II, when the Sharks assembled one of the best on-paper rosters in the history of the tournament and took home the trophy. After missing the playoffs in SPL III, the Sharks rebounded in SPL IV, reaching the semifinals before falling to the eventual champions, the Wi-Fi Wolfpack. The Sharks would retain 6 players from that roster and build upon it, eventually claiming the trophy in SPL V. SPL VI would feature many new faces, and these players would unfortunately be unable to rescue the Sharks from drowning that season. In SPL VII, though, the team would return back to form, and makiri would once again hoist the trophy before retiring from managing for good.

I'm sure a question many people may have is why a man with this ridiculous of a resume lands at 10th place on the list. The answer is that he was not the primary contributor to any of these wins, as other managers certainly had far more impact on the drafts and the team as a whole. As a VGC / Doubles player, makiri's main niche was contributing towards the team's VGC / Doubles slot, a role which he performed well. Throughout makiri's tenure with the franchise, the Sharks were consistently able to spend negligible amounts of money on Doubles OU and still end up with a decent performance from the slot, allowing the team to flourish in other tiers. In SPL V, makiri's influence led to the drafting of Arcticblast, who managed to put up a 4-4 record for only 3k. TheFourthChaser was a similar success in SPL VII, as he went 6-5 for the same price. Overall, makiri certainly played a role in the Shark's ascension to the top of SPL's hierarchy, but his limited contributions compared to other managers on the list lower his overall place in these rankings.

9

Tsunami- (2/3 playoffs, 2 finals, 1 trophy)

After winning the SPL V trophy, -Tsunami-, most commonly referred to as "ShakeItUp," chose to abandon the Sharks and attempt to manage the Congregation of the Classiest with kokoloko. The Classiest were historically a poor franchise, but had managed to make the playoffs the year prior. Shake and koko were less than enthused with the franchise's retention options, however, and instead opted to pursue a more risky strategy of trading most of them away for money. The SPL VI Classiest were an extremely balanced roster, featuring no player that cost above 16k; generally, teams focus on amassing star players and balancing out the money with value picks, so this form of roster building was certainly unique and far less proven. The team would have to make some adaptations throughout the season to make up for some of their shortcomings, such as trading away their underperforming RBY player in order to acquire funds to purchase elodin for BW OU, flexing bruno into RBY, and shifting the team's most expensive player, Bad Ass, into RU. The Classiest's management displayed a great amount of ingenuity with these maneuvers, and they eventually resulted in a roster that was able to make the playoffs. The Classiest would go on to dispatch the BIGs and Ruiners in the playoffs and give -Tsunami- his first ever trophy as a manager.

In SPL VII, Shake decided to alter the team completely, creating a brand-new roster centered on Ojama, who had expressed his interest in playing for the team. The acquisition of value picks such as Evuelf, blunder, and Memoric were instrumental in helping this iteration of the team dominate the regular season. The Classiest would finish with 15 points and would easily clinch a playoff spot. The team would have a close bout with the Ruiners, and would eventually advance to the finals after the Ruiners's idiotfrommars disconnected against MoP. The Classiest would unfortunately fall 7-5 in the finals after star lower tier player soulgazer lost to a mono Ice team, but the team's performances in SPL VI and VII were certainly extraordinary. SPL VIII would wind up being a train wreck for the rising star manager, however, as the Classiest would wind up getting annihilated and land in 10th place. -Tsunami-'s managing career would end there, but his results in SPL VI and VII highlighted his abilities to successfully put his players in the ideal tiers for them to succeed in as well as his ability to create two vastly different, playoff-worthy rosters. However, his team's extremely poor SPL VIII performance lowers his overall ranking.

8

Synre (2/2 playoffs, 1 final, 1 trophy)

Synre was the head manager of the Indie Scooters in the first-ever edition of SPL. Managing in the first SPL ever is certainly different to managing one nowadays; there were no past data points in terms of prices players should go for, and Synre also did not have access to a convenient sheet of team tournament performances to inform his draft process. Synre managed to amass a team filled with well-respected players of the time such as husk, Atticus, Gouki, and gene. He also managed to identify solid value picks such as MrE, who put up a 7-4 record for only 4k. Perhaps what is most impressive about this team is that, despite spending 28.5k on a player named JMC who would quit near the end of the season, they still managed to persevere and take home the trophy in rather dominant fashion, going 10-4 in the playoffs.

With the core of players he had drafted in SPL I, hopes were high for the Scooters the following season. Synre managed to put together a team that would once again make the playoffs; unfortunately, they would fall in the semifinals this time around. Perhaps most notable was his decision to re-commit to Folgorio in the auction, purchasing him for 13k despite his 3-6 performance the year prior. Folgorio would reward Synre with a 7-3 performance as he continued to establish himself as one of the site's best players. Synre would choose to end his managing career after SPL II; even though his time managing was short-lived, he successfully crafted a winning roster in an era with much less available data and no real drafting precedents to go off of. His ability to cultivate a team atmosphere that led to a tournament win despite the loss of a 28.5k player is also impressive. That is enough for him to crack the top 10 of this list.

7

The_Chaser (2/2 playoffs, 1 final, 1 trophy)

After having dominated the competition in RBY in SPL II to the tune of a 10-1 record, The_Chaser decided to try his hand at managing in SPL III. The Ruiners had already established themselves as one of SPL's best franchises, having made finals in both of the first two seasons of the tournament; The_Chaser would be looking to take them over the top. The crux of his plan would revolve around drafting Earthworm, who was considered at that time to the best player in Smogon history. The_Chaser fearlessly bid 30k on the legend, confident that he could find enough pieces of value to offset the Australian's massive price tag. He also chose to invest in McMeghan for 19.5k, a man who would go on to surpass Earthworm in the modern era and become one of the best players of all time. The_Chaser's bold auction strategy would pay dividends, as the Ruiners would dominate in the regular season and clinch the playoffs before week 9. The team would win a nail-biter against the Raiders in the semifinals before stomping the BIGs in the finals to take home the trophy.

With some of the core pieces from SPL III still on the team, The_Chaser looked to build upon his past success in SPL IV. His decision to purchase CTC for 5k would wind up being key in ensuring the team reached the playoffs for the fourth straight season. The Ruiners would play in SPL's first-ever tiebreak against the Tigers in the semifinals, narrowly falling short. Nonetheless, The_Chaser had manage to cement the Ruiners as the best franchise in SPL history in these two seasons. With the benefit of hindsight, The_Chaser's decision to spend 30k on Earthworm seems rather ingenious, as he was probably a bit underpriced for the time; after all, players of Earthworm's stature would wind up costing 40k a couple of years later. The_Chaser was not afraid to spend the money necessary to get the players he wanted, and the successes of his drafts help him land at #7 on this list.

6

Limitless (2/2 playoffs, 1 final, 1 trophy*)

Limitless was nothing short of a revolutionary in the SPL landscape. During SPL IV, each team had an unlimited amount of retains, and each retain only cost an additional 3k every subsequent season — unless the player was 3k, then their price would become 10k). Because of this, retains were absurdly powerful, and could allow a team to build a dynasty in a way that is simply not replicable in the modern era. However, what if a team did not have any players worth retaining? Well, back then, a manager could also trade some money and / or other players in exchange for a player's retention. Limitless took this strategy to the extreme, trading a whopping 25.5k for the retention rights of 5 players. This would naturally cripple the team's draft to some extent in SPL IV, but as seen with the aforementioned SPL I Scooters, teams have won this tournament while wasting even more money than this. The Wolfpack would wind up with a stars-and-scrubs type of roster, and the season started off pretty rocky. Limitless would wind up being banned in week 3 after forcibly ghosting one of his players; the team was also performing poorly and was in real danger of missing the playoffs. However, the Wolfpack would eventually manage to sneak into the playoffs with the help of additions such as GOD MARTH and would eventually take home the SPL trophy after dispatching the Sharks and Tigers. This is the asterisk to that one trophy, as it does not adorn Limitless's profile; he was forced to watch from the sidelines as his aggressively crafted team lifted the trophy together, without him.

While Limitless did not receive a trophy for this win, his bold strategy had paid off in the best way possible. The Wolfpack had won a trophy in what should have been the hardest year to do so for them. Heading into SPL V, the Wolfpack were in prime position to continue their success and give their manager the trophy he so desired. Limitless retained a whopping 8 players and would wind up creating one of the best on-paper teams in the history of the tournament; the roster still possesses the record for most Power Ranking points ever, amassing a ridiculous 89/120. The Wolfpack would cruise through the regular season, clinching a playoff spot by the end of week 8. Unfortunately, the Stark Sharks would narrowly defeat them in the semifinals, preventing Limitless from properly hoisting the trophy. Nonetheless, Limitless successfully took the biggest gamble in the history of the tournament and managed to elevate the Wolfpack into becoming one of the best franchises in SPL. That accomplishment alone earns him a spot on this list.

5

FlamingVictini (4/5 playoffs, 0 finals, 0 trophies)

After having established himself as one of the best team tour players on Smogon, FlamingVictini would take on the challenge of managing an SPL team in SPL X. He would be joined by Philip7086, who had finished in 10th place the prior season. This left the team with no retains, which is always a precarious position for a team to be in. Nonetheless, FV would manage to craft a solid roster, as Realistic Waters, robjr, and FMG all proved to be exceptional value picks. FV would miss the playoffs the following season, but he would return to the managing scene in SPL XIII, this time on the Ruiners. Ox the Fox was the team's only retain this time around due to the Ruiners's uncharacteristically disastrous SPL XII performance, where the squad finished in last place. Nonetheless, FV would manage to easily make the playoffs, as his team amassed 13 points in the regular season. The team would face off against the Raiders in the semifinals, where they would lose in a nail-biter in a tiebreak.

SPL XIV would prove to be a bit trickier, as the Ruiners collapsed near the end of the season after a hot start and almost missed the playoffs completely. However, the team did manage to make it in the end. FV would once again suffer a semifinals loss at the hands of the Raiders, but the squad's future certainly appeared to be bright. The team's regular season performance improved in SPL XV, and FV would reach the playoffs yet again, establishing himself as one of the most consistent managers of all time. The team took a commanding lead over the Tyrants and was in pole position to reach the finals for the first time under FV's tenure, but the Tyrants eventually tied the series. In the most cruel twist of fate yet, FV would yet again suffer an elimination in the semifinals after the team's ace player, xavgb, got haxxed out of a clear win by an Ice Fang Freeze. FV has yet to take home the coveted SPL trophy, but there is no doubt that he is one of greatest managers ever; making the playoffs at an 80% clip is extraordinarily difficult. His lack of a trophy prevents him from climbing higher on the list, but his ability to consistently create playoff-worthy rosters should be commended.

4

Tricking & Raiza (2/4 playoffs, 2 finals, 2 trophies)

These two are grouped into one slot because there is no way to separate their achievements in this tour. For Tricking, landing this high on the list is especially impressive, as he is also one of the best players in Smogon history; it is extraordinarily rare for excellent players to also be great managers. In fact, usually the opposite is true, as greats such as BKC and McMeghan have historically faltered while managing SPL. Raiza and Tricking won the World Cup of Smogon together in 2020, as Italy dominated throughout the tournament. The duo's first foray into managing came soon after that in SPL XII, where they took over the Team Raiders. They crafted a solid roster, but the team fell just short of the playoffs despite reaching 10 points. The two would look to improve on their SPL XII result in SPL XIII; their main gamble this time was their decision to purchase 100percentpureheat, undoubtedly one of the best SS OU players on the site, for 8.5k. Why was he so cheap? Well, he had decided to tier lock himself into DPP OU, which meant that he could not play SS OU until week 5. Because of this, the Raiders knew they could not achieve their true potential until after midseason; they would have to weather the storm until then. The season looked to be in dire straits almost immediately, though, as the squad dropped both of its first two matches. However, the team would manage to rebound from the poor start, and after midseason, the squad would ascend to the playoffs as predicted. The duo's decision to purchase Gtcha for 3.5k was paramount, as he put up a 6-1 record in the regular season. In the playoffs, Gtcha would continue to be the team's hero, putting up one of the best performances in team tour history, as he went 4-0 in the playoffs to help the Raiders survive multiple tiebreaks and claim the trophy. BIHI's shock upset win over the best RBY player ever in Heroic Troller in the finals tiebreak was also paramount. Overall, the duo's decision to pick up 100percentpureheat was certainly key to their victory, and their identification of value pieces such as elodin and the aforementioned Gtcha, the biggest steal in SPL history, was also essential to the win.

Many managers have won SPL I time, but doing so twice would help the Italian duo ascend to the next level in the hierarchy. The team decided to head into SPL XIV with Gtcha as their only retain. Their main stand this time would be purchasing bbeeaa, one of the best team tournament players of all time, for a whopping 38.5k. Unlike the last tournament, the SPL XIV Raiders surged out of the gates, picking up 3 wins in the first 3 weeks of the season. However, one of their promising value picks in zioziotrip would wind up getting forum banned early on in the season, dampening the team's joy. The real blow came in week 8, when their superstar carry bbeeaa got forum banned. The Raiders were essentially playing with a near-100k roster, and their title hopes had certainly taken a massive hit. Nonetheless, the team would not be deterred, easily clinching a playoff spot thanks to key contributors such as McMeghan and Jisoo. The Raiders would dispatch the Ruiners in the semifinals before facing off against the Sharks in the finals for the second time in a row. Gtcha would once again be the hero, delivering the decisive blow in the tiebreak to give Tricking and Raiza their second consecutive SPL trophy. This win was more impressive than the first due to the sheer amount of adversity the squad had to endure during the season; winning despite losing a 38.5k player is simply absurd. While SPL XV would be a disaster for the Italian duo, that result is a small price to pay for their past successes. Tricking and Raiza have demonstrated the ability to identify solid values in the draft, put their players in the best positions possible to succeed, and persevere through multiple key bans. Their team's performances in SPL XIII and XIV secure them a spot on the list.

3

Aeroblacktyl (3/4 playoffs, 2 finals, 2 trophies*)

Aeroblacktyl, generally known as "MoP," was the mastermind of the Sharks's ascension into the highest echelons of SPL success. After winning three straight World Cups with team Asia, MoP decided to try managing SPL. In SPL II, MoP helped create one of the best rosters in the tour's history. One of the key moments in the season came when he decided to trade B-Lulz, Dave, and dak for one of the best players on the site in panamaxis. This made the Sharks nigh unbeatable, as the star-studded roster cruised through the playoffs to deliver MoP his fourth Smogon trophy; the team would only drop 5 playoff games in total. He would return to the helm in SPL III, where the season would essentially end in week 1 after Ojama complained in public about Eternal, the team's most expensive player, ghosting him, resulting in the latter being banned for the season. Not to be deterred, MoP would again take control of the franchise for SPL IV. He decided to trade for one of the best players on the site in The Grand Babido, who would play a key role in the team's success that year. His most pivotal decision, though, was the choice to purchase a relatively unknown up-and-comer named ShakeItUp for 3k, who would wind up having one of the best seasons ever. Shake's 9-0 regular season performance would help propel the Sharks to the playoffs, where they would unfortunately fall in a close series to the eventual champions, the Wolfpack.

In SPL V, the total amount of managers for each team was reduced from four to three. Because of this, MoP decided to be generous and exclude himself from the roster, at least on paper. Despite this, he effectively functioned as the primary manager of the team and was more impactful to the victory than anyone else on the entire roster; this is where the asterisk comes from. The SPL V Sharks were built with a strong foundation that was carried over from SPL IV, as the team retained a whopping 6 players. After the auction, they even managed to get a player almost for free, as BKC traded them kael for 0.5k, who would go on to be an impactful part of the team and even help them secure a tie against BKC's team in week 4. By the end of week 8, the Sharks had already secured a playoff spot; in the playoffs, they would face off against the Wolfpack in a rematch of the previous year's semifinals. A big decision that MoP made for the playoffs was his choice to bench one of his retains and the man ranked #1 on the preseason BW OU Power Rankings, SoulWind, in favor of a veteran in Kevin Garrett due to the former's relatively poor performance. This is not a move that many managers would have had the guts to make, but MoP trusted in his instincts. The Sharks would wind up getting their revenge in a nail-biter to push themselves into the finals, aided by Kevin Garrett's upset win over GOD MARTH, one of the best BW players of the time. Their finals' opponents, the Cryonicles, were certainly threatening, as evidenced by their 11-1 demolition of the Classiest in the semifinals. However, key upsets by Edgar and, for the second week in a row, Kevin Garrett, would propel the Sharks to their second SPL trophy, establishing the franchise as the best of all time. MoP's bold decision to bench one of his star players had paid dividends, as Kevin Garrett took down two of the best BW OU players of the time period in Aqualouis and the aforementioned Marth. MoP was, without question, the primary reason for the Sharks's ascension to the top of the SPL totem pole. He cultivated a winning atmosphere, and made each and every player believe that each and every game was winnable. The Sharks were a team that would stop at nothing to acquire success; under MoP, they were the villains of the tournament. The team would utilize every trick in the book, fair or unfair, to snatch victory from their competitors. No one on this list personifies the pre-SPL IX era of SPL more than MoP, and his excellent performances in that era help him land at 3rd on this list.

2

Tony (3/5 playoffs, 2 finals, 2 trophies)

Arguably the best manager ever in terms of overall tournament results, former YouTube star TonyFlygon finds himself at second on this list. Unlike most people on this list, Tony did not really have any notable results as a player before becoming an SPL manager. His rise on Smogon began when he led Europe to the finals of World Cup 2017, though, highlighting his strength as a captain. After that, he decided to manage the first-ever Smogon Snake Draft, where he assembled a solid roster that came within a few games of winning the trophy. After showing his prodigious talent as a leader, Tony took on the ultimate test: managing SPL. In SPL IX, he orchestrated the most infamous trade in Smogon history: the ABR trade. He would acquire ABR, who would go on to become the best player of all time, for 4k + an RU player named ChillShadow. This trade seems even more lopsided with hindsight than it did at the time. Tony would also retain SoulWind and Fear, creating a core of players that would almost certainly set the team up for success. The SPL IX Wolfpack would wind up being arguably the best on-paper roster in the history of SPL, laden with star talent and arguably possessing no real weaknesses. Despite the overwhelming strength of the roster, the playoffs were certainly no picnic. Both the Ruiners and the Raiders would put up a strong fight against the squad; however, the Wolfpack were up to the task. They would win back-to-back tiebreaks, capped by ABR's freeze of TDK's Magnezone, to secure the trophy. This result was about as good of a start as a manager could have asked for. Tony was the mastermind of the best trade in the history of the tournament and had created perhaps the best on-paper team ever.

The SPL X Wolfpack would look a bit worse than their SPL IX counterparts. However, the team would still make the playoffs. This time around, though, they would get obliterated by the Tyrants in the semifinals. Nonetheless, Tony had proven he was not simply a one-hit wonder, having crafted playoff-worthy rosters two years in a row. He would make another solid team in SPL XI, as the squad racked up 10 points. However, this was only enough to finish in 6th place that year, meaning that Tony would miss the playoffs for the first time. His rather baffling decision to spend 22.5k on Pearl for BW OU certainly played a role in the team's unfortunate failure. In SPL XII, though, Tony struck back with a vengeance. He purchased his old friend ABR, this time for 36k, in an effort to get back on top of the SPL mountain. His most key purchase, though, would be his decision to retain Star for 21.5k, who would go on to produce one of the best seasons of all time, putting up a spectacular 10-2 record. The Wolfpack would cruise through the regular season, securing the first seed heading into the playoffs. They would dispatch the Classiest in a close series in the semifinals before facing off against the Tyrants in the finals. One of the team's key players, talah, choked a clear win against John W, which eventually led to the series going to a tiebreak. There, talah would redeem themselves, taking down 100percentpureheat while Star took down Eo in a game that essentially ended on turn 1 after Star made a legacy-defining prediction, KOing Eo's Garchomp with a Freeze Dry from his Kyurem. The most impressive part of this win was the fact that Tony had secured his second trophy despite his star player, ABR, having one of the worst performances of his career, as the GOAT went 5-7 and lost all 3 of his playoff games. This win would cement Tony as the best manager ever; through 4 seasons, he had created three-playoff worthy teams, one of them being the most talented squad ever, and claimed two trophies to push the Wolfpack back into the GOAT franchise conversation.

Unfortunately for him, his SPL XIII campaign would wind up being derailed almost immediately, as his co-manager, BKC, could not resist bidding on John W's roommate, causing the team to essentially waste 4.5k for nothing. The Wolfpack would struggle that season, finishing with 8 points; they did have a shot to make the playoffs in week 9, but would ultimately fail to win the week. Nonetheless, Tony's legacy is far too great for one relatively poor performance to really hurt it. Tony is a man known for getting the best out of his players; people want to play for him, and he knows how to put them in the best positions to succeed. talah was one of the worst team tournament players of all time, but after teaming with Tony, they managed to transform themselves into a player worth 32.5k in SCL. Of course, not all of that can be attributed to Tony, but it is still a feather in his cap nonetheless. Tony's rosters are essentially always competitive. Even if they do not make the playoffs, they will certainly come close. His SPL resume is outstanding, but the man at the top has been even better.

1

reyscarface (6/7 playoffs, 3 finals, 1 trophy)

After getting the monkey off his back in SPL XV, there is no doubt that reyscarface is the best manager in SPL history. His consistency really speaks for itself. rey spent a lot of time on Smogon before eventually deciding to manage in SPL; he captained Latin America in World Cup for many years while also playing for the team. He participated in many seasons in SPL, but he never managed to experience real team success. He did manage to win an individual trophy after taking down the Smogon Frontier in 2013, though. His first foray into managing came in SPL VI, where he took over the Cryonicles. Despite defeating the future champions, the Classiest 9-3 in the regular season, the Cryonicles would miss the playoffs. This would be the last time rey would ever miss the SPL playoffs as a manager, though, which is genuinely absurd. After taking a hiatus from managing for a few years, rey returned to the Tyrants in SPL IX. This came fresh off the heels of his best-ever SPL performance, where he went 10-0 for the Raiders in SM OU. rey managed to create formidable roster in SPL IX, and the team only got better at midseason, where rey picked up Earthworm and blunder using the surplus of funds he had saved from the original auction. The team was undoubtedly a powerhouse after those acquisitions, but they would unfortunately lose in a tiebreak in the semifinals. One of the key decisions rey made this tournament was his choice to trade for and then retain Christo, who would go on to become a Tyrants's staple and consistently grade out as one of the best value picks in each tour. rey would return in SPL X, where he would create an even better team; the SPL X Tyrants were certainly of the best on-paper squads in the history of the tournament. A key pick this time around would be Gilbert Arenas, who would go on to be another staple of the franchise. The team cruised through the regular season and smashed the Wolfpack 11-1 in the Semifinals. Unfortunately for them, lax and Lavos carried the Ruiners past the Tyrants in the finals after a grueling series.

SPL XI would feature rey creating another solid roster that secured the first seed and a spot in the playoffs. The Ruiners would once again knock the Tyrants out, this time in the semifinals. Nevertheless, rey had established himself as one of the best managers on the site, having reached the playoffs 3 times in a row. rey would reach the playoffs yet again in SPL XII, this time reaching the finals after knocking out the Cryonicles in the semifinals. The 4th time would not be the charm for rey, though, as the Tyrants would suffer yet another gut-wrenching tiebreak loss. Even still, rey's consistency was certainly to be admired, even though he appeared to be cursed. In SPL XIII, rey demonstrated his ability to battle through adversity and still succeed. One of his key retains, John W, who was one of the best SV OU players on the site, got banned before the season even began. Despite there now being a gaping hole in the roster in SV OU, the Tyrants still managed to make the playoffs, before losing in the semifinals tiebreak to the Sharks. It was SPL XIV, though, that really showed rey's value. He decided not to manage that year, and the team immediately collapsed. The SPL XIV Tyrants overpaid for many players and finished the season in 10th place, a far cry from their usual winning ways. Without rey at the helm, the Tyrants were simply an unviable franchise. In SPL XV, he took charge of the team yet again, and unsurprisingly, the team returned to the form. The season was certainly an arduous one, though, as a couple of the team's players, most importantly CTC, got banned during the season. Even still, the squad was still strong enough to reach the playoffs. Their old rivals, the Ruiners, looked poised to eliminate the team yet again, but as mentioned in FlamingVictini's section, the heavens would not let reyscarface fall short this time around. The Tyrants would eventually make the finals, where they would defeat the Tigers 7-5 after Poek took down S1nn0hC0nfirm3d. At long last, reyscarface finally had his SPL trophy.

Consistently making the playoffs is certainly harder than winning a singular trophy. The fact that rey has made 6 playoffs in a row is genuinely amazing. No other manager has come close to matching this feat, and they likely never will. He has without question established himself as the best drafter ever, and he is a master of creating rosters that mesh old veterans with promising young talent; the SPL XV roster is a prime example of that. He was the driving force behind the Tyrants's accession into the highest echelons of the SPL hierarchy. As long as rey maintains control of the franchise, it will consistently challenge for the trophy. The Tyrants are a dangerous obstacle that other teams will have to go through each and every year if they wish to snatch glory for themselves. In a tournament where most managers struggle to find any real level of consistency, reyscarface has managed to make it look easy. That is the key reason why he stands alone on top of this list.

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