Two stages of the season are down, and only two more left before we head to Dallas for Champs. Heading into Stage 3, the meta has shifted with three new maps coming into the rotation. This has shifted the balance of power back to the SMGs, making them the key role in the meta.
Now in the midst of the Major 3 Qualifiers, Breaking Point has updated our rankings for the AR Player of the Year race. Players are ranked based on their performances from the season so far. These rankings will continue to change, as new maps have the potential to spice up the competition, but this piece serves to give a great insight into how the season has gone so far!
Previous Rankings
Post-Major 2 - Mar 26th
Mid-Major 2 Qualifiers - Feb 27th
Entering Major 2 Qualifiers - Feb 14th
Best Performance of the Qualifiers - Jan 23rd
Opening two-week performance - Jan 9th
Storylines to watch
The best match of the upcoming week of matches is the finale, Atlanta versus New York. These two teams are trending in opposite directions. Atlanta has been on fire, taking down the Ultra 3-0 and steamrolling their way over any competition they've faced.
New York, on the other hand, has struggled. After taking down Minnesota to start the qualifiers, they fell to Carolina and Seattle.
With the top 3 of the SMG Player of the Year Ladder all within this one match, it is guaranteed to give fans fireworks.
Honorable mentions: Pred (6th), Gwinn (7th), Nero (8th), KiSMET (9th), Lynz (10th)
1) Chris "Simp" Lehr - Atlanta FaZe
Team Record: 22-4 Series Record, 73-29 Map Record, 325 CDL Points (1st)
Next Match: Sunday, April 28th vs New York Subliners at 6:00 pm EST
His case for SMG Player of the Year: Simp has powered Atlanta to a League-leading 22-4 series record, 73-29 map record, and 325 CDL points. The team has already won a Major Championship, but more look to be in the cards. Chris is one of just 4 SMGs to have a positive KD in every mode, but he has a 1.10 or better in all three game modes. The star SMG shows insane pace in leading the team in Slayer Rating, Kills per 10 minutes in both Hardpoint & Control, and is just a fraction off aBeZy for kills per round in SND. Not only is he a great slayer, but Simp leads the team with 43 bomb plants & carries the bomb in 74% of rounds. Not only does Simp top the SMG Player of the Year Ladder, but also the MVP.
Advanced Season Stats
Overall
KD: 1.16
Slayer Rating: 85.4
aKD: 1.16
TES: 60.5%
Hardpoint
KD: 1.18
Kills per 10 minutes: 24.0
Hill Time per 10 minutes: 59.4
Damage per 10 minutes: 4339.7
SnD
KD: 1.22
Kills per round: 0.80
ADR: 159.0
Opening Duel Win Percentage: 55.6%
Control
KD: 1.10
Kills per 10 minutes: 19.7
Caps per ATK Round: 1.8
Damage per 10 minutes: 4013.0
2) Paco "HyDra" Rusiewiez - New York Subliners
Team Record: 16-8 Series Record, 57-38 Map Record, 190 CDL Points (4th)
Next Match: Sunday, April 28th vs Atlanta FaZe at 6:00 pm EST
His case for SMG Player of the Year: HyDra has been a consistent slaying presence for the Subliners, even though team success hasn't been maximized as of yet. Paco leads New York in multiple categories including KD (1.13), Slayer Rating (86.6), Hardpoint KD (1.11), Hardpoint Kills per 10 minutes (24.1), Control KD (1.17), Control Kills per 10 minutes (22.1), and much more. While his objective impact is minimal, his slaying allows his teammates to capitalize in that category. If the Subliners can find momentum in either Major 3 or 4 and win a Championship, HyDra's case grows much stronger.
Advanced Season Stats
Overall
KD: 1.13
Slayer Rating: 86.6
aKD: 1.12
TES: 59.3%
Hardpoint
KD: 1.11
Kills per 10 minutes: 24.1
Hill Time per 10 minutes: 38.6
Damage per 10 minutes: 4381.9
SnD
KD: 1.10
Kills per round: 0.74
ADR: 148.7
Opening Duel Win Percentage: 41.3%
Control
KD: 1.17
Kills per 10 minutes: 22.1
Caps per ATK Round: 0.7
Damage per 10 minutes: 3964.2
3) Tyler "aBeZy" Pharris - Atlanta FaZe
Team Record: 22-4 Series Record, 73-29 Map Record, 325 CDL Points (1st)
Next Match: Sunday, April 28th vs New York Subliners at 6:00 pm EST
His case for SMG Player of the Year: Atlanta FaZe has been taking over the League since getting 2nd at Major 1. aBeZy didn't have the best LAN in the first Stage, but has done nothing but improve since then. He has been the catalyst for the dominant stretch this year, impacting all three modes greatly. If Atlanta continues to dominate the CDL, aBeZy's only obstacle will be his teammate, Simp.
Advanced Season Stats
Overall
KD: 1.03
Slayer Rating: 76.6
aKD: 1.08
TES: 58.6%
Hardpoint
KD: 0.95
Kills per 10 minutes: 20.0
Hill Time per 10 minutes: 49.4
Damage per 10 minutes: 3784.7
SnD
KD: 1.20
Kills per round: 0.81
ADR: 165.0
Opening Duel Win Percentage: 59.5%
Control
KD: 1.10
Kills per 10 minutes: 18.9
Caps per ATK Round: 1.7
Damage per 10 minutes: 3542.0
4) Tobias "CleanX" Juul Jønsson - Toronto Ultra
Team Record: 19-6 Series Record, 61-29 Map Record, 275 CDL Points (2nd)
Next Match: Saturday, April 27th vs Carolina Royal Ravens at 4:30 pm EST
His case for SMG Player of the Year: CleanX & the Ultra made Stage 1 of the season look easy. They finished 6-1 in the qualifiers before going undefeated at the Major with a 7-2 map count against Atlanta. Tobi was one of the main factors of their success, finishing the Stage with a 1.08 KD with a 1.43 in SND. While they struggled at Major 2 and got swept 3-0 by Atlanta last weekend, CleanX has still played great for the Ultra. If the team can rally to win another Major this season, CleanX jumps right back to the top of the list.
Advanced Season Stats
Overall
KD: 1.05
Slayer Rating: 81.1
aKD: 1.03
TES: 58.9%
Hardpoint
KD: 1.09
Kills per 10 minutes: 23.3
Hill Time per 10 minutes: 47.2
Damage per 10 minutes: 4257.8
SnD
KD: 0.98
Kills per round: 0.71
ADR: 145.7
Opening Duel Win Percentage: 49.4%
Control
KD: 1.02
Kills per 10 minutes: 18.8
Caps per ATK Round: 1.2
Damage per 10 minutes: 3664.9
5) Anthony "Shotzzy" Cuevas-Castro - OpTic Texas
Team Record: 19-8 Series Record, 65-43 Map Record, 265 CDL Points (3rd)
Next Match: Sunday, April 28th vs Miami Heretics at 4:30 pm EST
His case for SMG Player of the Year: With both New York & Toronto struggling as of late, Texas is the clear-cut 2nd best team in the League. The team has a 19-8 series record this season, but are 19-2 against every team other than Atlanta. Shotzzy & Co finished 3rd at Major 1, went a perfect 7-0 in the Major 2 Qualifiers, and finished 2nd at Major 2. Shotzzy has generated impact at each stage, including having a 1.09 KD in Stage 3. On the year, Ant has a 1.21 SND KD with 0.81 kills per round and the 3rd most opening duels won (53). While he is a longshot at this very moment, if OpTic can finish the season strong with a Major win it'll give Shotzzy a strong case at the Award.
Overall
KD: 1.03
Slayer Rating: 79.7
aKD: 1.07
TES: 57.8%
Hardpoint
KD: 0.97
Kills per 10 minutes: 21.4
Hill Time per 10 minutes: 57.3
Damage per 10 minutes: 3869.9
SND
KD: 1.21
Kills per round: 0.81
ADR: 151.6
Opening Duel Win Percentage: 52.0%
Control
KD: 1.06
Kills per 10 minutes: 19.1
Caps per ATK Round: 2.1
Damage per 10 minutes: 3624.3
