Luz: “In all of his previous teams, s1mple was, in essence, the captain.”

He really does have a winner’s mentality when he’s convinced he can win. But as soon as he decides that victory is impossible, he takes on a completely defeatist attitude. And I think that affects him very strongly, especially now that he’s been through so much. He’s won a Major. He’s won practically everything there is to win. Maybe not as much as he’d like, but he’s still been to the top. He’s experienced it. And so, when it comes to Karrigan, right? Karrigan won’t prepare as hard or give it his all—120%—when he’s playing in lower-tier tournaments or competing for trophies that aren’t particularly important to him. But when it comes to a Major—and we saw this with Team Falcons—he’s truly capable of giving it his all. He’s capable of making that huge leap that will literally carry the team across the finish line. And s1mple is exactly the same. 

I’m actually pretty optimistic about s1mple on this roster. Cautiously optimistic, but optimistic nonetheless. Because for the first time in a long while, we’re seeing a team where perhaps only one player looks a bit questionable. And even that player is s1mple’s friend. I have no other explanation for why electroNic ended up on this team. But now, he’s finally surrounded by players who are either very experienced or very young, hungry for victory, and incredibly strong. So yes, I’m really looking forward to seeing how s1mple will play in this lineup.

I don’t think s1mple needs some super-tactical, super-intelligent captain. I think it’s actually the opposite. If you paired him with, say, Aleksib, or—I don’t know—somehow brought MSL back, I think that would be a real nightmare for s1mple. I think s1mple needs a captain who’s simply very good individually. And when I say that, I mean basic mechanics and in-game decision-making. And Magisk obviously has that.

He’s fundamentally very reliable. I don’t think he’ll make the kind of micro-mistakes that cause s1mple to die or the team to lose a round for virtually no reason—as happened all too often with MUTiRiS. And for that reason alone, I’m quite positive about Magisk’s move. Because, to reiterate, he doesn’t need to be some kind of tactical genius. He needs to be someone s1mple can trust and be confident will do everything right. Meanwhile, s1mple himself will continue to build the game around himself. Because in all his previous teams, s1mple was, in essence, the captain. Go back and watch how he played for Natus Vincere. He probably called more plays than any captain he’s ever played with. And there’s a good reason for that. Because he understands how Counter-Strike works. He knows how to create situations for himself where he can showcase his skill. And yes, all Magisk needs to do on this team right now is support the players around him and not make mistakes when s1mple asks him to take specific actions. And I think he’s more than capable of handling that.