"Rogue and Gigantti died for this?"

"This roster got in and FaZe didn't?"

"The assistant coach, Shake, is the best player on the team!"

"The video looks awful and gets players name wrong."

"It's mind-boggling how many skilled players aren't getting into OWL-- and then you see a roster like this."

"Could this team have even qualified for contenders?"

These are just some of the comments you can find on Twitter, Reddit, and just about every other social media platform where fans are discussing Boston Uprisings latest player reveal. Some are pointing to this roster as a prime example as to why the first season of OWL is bound to have some terribly underperforming rosters, while others still can't get over why the video reveal looks like something from the early days of esports and not a polished, professional video.

Boston Uprising Roster

USA - DreamKazper (Jonathan Sanchez) DPS
RUSSIA - Mistakes (Stanislav Danilov) DPS
KOREA -  Striker (Kwon Nam-Joo) DPS
KOREA -  Kalios (Shin Woo-yeol) Tank
KOREA - Gamsu (Noh Yeong-jin) Tank
CANADA - NotE (Lucas Meissner) Tank
DENMARK - Kellex (Kristian Keller) Support
USA - Snow (Mikias Yohannes) Support

To be fair, their criticism is a little harsh. Sure, Boston Uprising isn't made of already tested teams or a handful of famous players, but that doesn't mean there isn't something there. Chris "HuK" Loranger, the president of gaming for the franchise, has stated before he wants to build a team where each player has a high level of "coachability" and the roster reveal, while not flashy, may have that in spades. 

Is OWL the place for coachability?

DreamKazper, Snow, and NotE are banking on high levels of coachability because their previous time in the professional Overwatch circuit has not been impressive. Many fans are worried that their inclusion into the OWL is a sign of nepotism and that it is an injustice that so many proven free agents are missing out while "Tier-2" players make the cut.

Boston Uprising will either have to lean heavily on the reliability of Mistakes, Gamsu and Kalios (Striker is a decent player, but not one of the stand-outs) or hope their gamble of forming a "coachable" team rather than an already proven squad pays off.


The Bottom Line

As of now, Boston is a team without a core group of tested players expected to compete with the likes of EnvyUs (Who have been playing together for two years) and Lunatic Hai. While the roster has potential to grow, it won't make Boston fans feel good when their team loses every match early in the season against teams that are already OWL ready.