My Personal ADV ZU Player Rankings:
The ADV ZU player pool is perhaps one of the most competitive pools out there. With the combination of many established players and several potential hotshots that are looking for a point to prove, ADV ZU has the potential to be the most exciting tier throughout this tour. Today I will be providing my own personal ADV ZU player rankings and going into some depth on why these players have what it takes.
1)
Baoba - There could only be two candidates for this number 1 spot, that being Baoba and Scizornite. I feel Baoba and Scizornite are very difficult to rank in terms of who is the number 1 and 2 in this slot. Both are tournament proven, with Baoba winning the
ADV ZU tour for Grand Slam while Scizornite has both a
Grand Slam Playoffs win (featuring ZU) and an
ADV ZU Spotlight Tour win. You could pick either one of these and you wouldn't be making a bad decision. In my personal opinion however, I've opted for Baoba because he has been more consistent when it comes to his tournament performances, and he is more likely to perform against tough matchups in any given situation.
2)
Scizornite - While I have Scizornite placed below Baoba, Scizornite has many qualities that makes him a top candidate. Scizornite has potentially the highest skill ceiling out of the entire pool, backed up by his Grand Slam win, and Scizornite is a dedicated performer within ADV. Both he and Baoba will be a fun watch this season, and I would suggest to managers to splash the credits to acquire these two.
3)
PlzNoStep - PlzNoStep is another seriously fun watch because he is a very diverse builder and player. Steppy is a balance Queen amongst ZU, and his innovations throughout have been a joy to watch. He is not afraid to experiment, and has the confidence to
slay the competition. PlzNoStep doesn't have as high of ceiling compared to Baoba or Scizornite on this list, but he can most certainly match them in consistency. We shall see what Steppy does in this tour.
4)
JoaF - JoaF is a very talented & generally good player. My question marks for JoaF this tour are how consistent will he be throughout this tour. He has the 3rd highest skill ceiling out of the player pool that I've mentioned, and he isn't afraid to turn down a challenge, but will his performances translate to results? He should be a moderately cheap pickup, and he can be a key piece into any team's tournament win with the right support.
[While I won't do anything formal about my reasoning, this is where I would place Hachimaki at this point in time. If you draft Hachimaki, you are likely to pick up numerous wins throughout the tour]
5)
MelNinja - I'm honestly not certain on the placement of Melninja. I think a good comparison to make rn with Melninja is with 5Dots, where both are solid players at their respective tiers, but do tend to get lucky in a fair amount of sets. Melninja should be able to make waves in the tour with the right support though, and don't go sleeping on this potential darkhorse.
6)
Bydy - A player who I am certain on his ability however is Bydy. A generally capable player with and without support, and he has lots of overall experience within the ADV tier. I will say Bydy doesn't have as high of a ceiling compared to the rest of the players above him on this list, but Bydy is certainly a capable enough player that could be worth watching.
7)
BP - BP is a difficult person to rank. This is because BP is a capable player on his own, but he is often better as someone who is sitting back and providing support. This is probably where I'd fit him based on his knowledge and support. BP probably won't be starting every game but will provide key secondary ADV help that will push other players over the line.
8)
THE_CHUNGLER - I won't lie, THE_CHUNGLER has made a habit of doing well in performances but just not quite being clutch enough in finals results. However, THE_CHUNGLER has proven to be a solid force within the ADV and ZU community, reaching the finals of the ADV Grand Slam as well as the finals of the Spotlight tour, both of which unfortunately losing out to Scizornite. THE_CHUNGLER is a great all-round player and support option for teams, he will grind out wins, and he should be a joy to watch. He can also play GSC and SV too!
9)
BlunderGoth - Compared to BP's personal rankings, this feels somewhat low, but regardless I think BlunderGoth has really good potential to be a dark horse during this tour. The main drawbacks to BlunderGoth however are the support that is required and there are inconsistencies, but if you are willing to take a punt, then BG is the perfect option for you!
10)
Big Tony 2014 - I've felt like I've been a bit of Big Tony 2014 hater lately, but I reckon he can contribute significantly to any given team. The main reason he is ranked lower is because he has been somewhat hit or miss as of late, and there have been recent showings where the Big T-Dog has fallen short. Provide Big Tony 2014 some support, and he will suit any team (he can also play SV and ORAS too!).
Quick HMs to TheyCallMePhil, MJ, Wooper, and Alice Kazumi regarding this slot. These four players all have what it takes to play ADV ZU, but all four of these I imagine will be better suited in other tiers (TCMP is very flexible and may suit RBY given support, MJ is an absolute weapon in SV, Wooper is an overall support juggernaut, and Alice Kazumi is within my top 3 picks for GSC ZU).
Appreciate everyone for taking their time to read this, and GSC ZU Player Rankings coming soon...
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Pretentious Probopass