With the return of the qualifiers, this Friday we have our first rankings for SMG Player of the Year! Players we're ranked based on their performances from the first two weeks of matches. These rankings are bound to change as players get more experience & comfortable with the game, but this piece serves to give good insight on how the season has gone so far!
Storylines to watch
OpTic Texas versus Atlanta FaZe is easily the highlight match of the qualifiers, but don't sleep on the Miami Heretics facing OpTic Texas during Week 4. This series will pit two of the Top 4 SMGs against each other in Pred & MettalZ. MettalZ has been one of the best players in the CDL this season, holding a 1.25 overall KD. In Control, Pred has the #1 Control KD with 1.52 while MettalZ has the #4 spot with 1.36. This sets the stage for a perfect showdown in the swing game mode. With Pred having years of experience being a top SMG, this matchup gives MettalZ the opportunity to prove that he belongs at the top.
The SMG Ladder
1) Chris "Simp" Lehr - Atlanta FaZe
Team Record: 3-0 Series Record, 9-3 Map Record, 30 CDL Points
Next Match: Friday, January 12th vs LA Guerrillas at 3:00 pm EST
Why is Simp #1: Arguably the most improved player coming into Modern Warfare 3, Simp has been electrifying during the opening two weekends. He is the only player in the CDL to have a 1.20 KD or higher in every game mode. His lowest is a 1.24 in Hardpoint. Simp is the only player on this list with over 55 seconds of hill time per 10 minutes and over 1.5 tiers captured per attacking round. What's is how high his slaying output is while maintaining high objective statistics. With this level of form, it is guaranteed that Simp will be on the Ladder for the foreseeable future.
Advanced Season Stats
Overall
KD: 1.26
Slayer Rating: 84.5
aKD: 1.27
TES: 61.2%
Hardpoint
KD: 1.24
Kills per 10 minutes: 22.3
Hill Time per 10 minutes: 82.3
Damage per 10 minutes: 3844.5
SND
KD: 1.27
Kills per round: 0.83
ADR: 140.5
Opening Duel Win Percentage: 60.0%
Control
KD: 1.29
Kills per 10 minutes: 21.7
Caps per ATK Round: 2.0
Damage per 10 minutes: 3871.3
2) Adrian "MettalZ" Serrano - Miami Heretics
Team Record: 3-0 Series Record, 9-2 Map Record, 30 CDL Points
Next Match: Saturday, January 13th vs Seattle Surge at 3:00 pm EST
Why is MettalZ #2: When the Miami Heretics announced their full Spanish roster, many didn’t know where to rank the team in the CDL landscape. Now two weeks into the season, and the Heretics have shocked the league. MettalZ has been a major contributor, having a 1.18 KD or better in every single game mode. His best mode has been Control. He averages 20.2 kills & 3655.2 damage per 10 minutes while holding a 1.36 KD. With a hard schedule ahead, this gives MettalZ the perfect opportunity to prove himself and stay on top of the ladder.
Advanced Season Stats
Overall
KD: 1.25
Slayer Rating: 84.1
aKD: 1.27
TES: 63.0%
Hardpoint
KD: 1.18
Kills per 10 minutes: 23.4
Hill Time per 10 minutes: 72.1
Damage per 10 minutes: 4529.7
SND
KD: 1.26
Kills per round: 0.77
ADR: 140.6
Opening Duel Win Percentage: 44.4%
Control
KD: 1.36
Kills per 10 minutes: 20.2
Caps per ATK Round: 0.8
Damage per 10 minutes: 3655.2
3) Paco "HyDra" Rusiewiez - New York Subliners
Team Record: 3-0 Series Record, 9-4 Map Record, 30 CDL Points
Next Match: Friday, January 12th vs Minnesota Rokkr at 6:00 pm EST
Why is HyDra #3: Coming off of the World Championship victory in Modern Warfare 2, the New York Subliners had high expectations coming into this season. After a shaky start, the Subliners look back in form with HyDra continuing to be a dominant force in Hardpoint. In the game mode, Paco has a CDL-high 1.29 KD, 23.5 Kills per 10 minutes, 44.9 seconds of hill time per 10 minutes, and 4064.9 damage per 10 minutes. In the other two modes, HyDra hasn’t been as consistent but still has good individual numbers. With the team back on track, HyDra will be a name to watch on the ladder going into the future.
Advanced Season Stats
Overall
KD: 1.16
Slayer Rating: 83.3
aKD: 1.12
TES: 60.0%
Hardpoint
KD: 1.29
Kills per 10 minutes: 23.5
Hill Time per 10 minutes: 44.9
Damage per 10 minutes: 4064.9
SND
KD: 1.08
Kills per round: 0.75
ADR: 136.1
Opening Duel Win Percentage: 42.9%
Control
KD: 1.03
Kills per 10 minutes: 19.7
Caps per ATK Round: 0.3
Damage per 10 minutes: 3754.9
4) Amer "Pred" Zulbeari - OpTic Texas
Team Record: 3-1 Series Record, 11-5 Map Record, 30 CDL Points
Next Match: Saturday, January 13th vs Las Vegas Legion at 7:30 pm EST
Why is Pred #4: The move to Texas was always in the cards for Pred, joining a team capable of winning multiple championships this season. He has continued to play at a very high level with OpTic, even setting the Control KD record with a 2.70 behind a 27-10 stat line. Control has been his best game mode, leading the CDL with a 1.52 KD while averaging 21.2 kills and 3486.0 damage per 10 minutes. Pred’s only question mark is Search & Destroy, where the star SMG currently holds a 0.91 KD. Given more time to polish the SnD form over the holiday break, Pred & OpTic will be one of the scariest teams going into Major 1.
Advanced Season Stats
Overall
KD: 1.23
Slayer Rating: 80.2
aKD: 1.17
TES: 60.1%
Hardpoint
KD: 1.16
Kills per 10 minutes: 22.5
Hill Time per 10 minutes: 28.6
Damage per 10 minutes: 4118.9
SND
KD: 0.91
Kills per round: 0.64
ADR: 130.6
Opening Duel Win Percentage: 47.1%
Control
KD: 1.52
Kills per 10 minutes: 21.2
Caps per ATK Round: 0.6
Damage per 10 minutes: 3486.0
5) Tobias "CleanX" Juul Jønsson - Toronto Ultra
Team Record: 2-1 Series Record, 6-4 Map Record, 20 CDL Points
Next Match: Friday, January 12th vs Seattle Surge at 4:30 pm EST
Why is CleanX #5: The Toronto Ultra acquired Envoy in the offseason, upgrading their slaying power and SMG duo. This has allowed CleanX to reach peak form and take over matches for the Ultra. Tobi sits at a 1.15 overall KD for the season with a CDL-high 96.6 Slayer Rating. His best individual mode is SnD, where the entry SMG sits at a 1.41 KD. CleanX averages 171.8 ADR, 0.89 kills per round, and is winning 50.0% of his opening duels. With the pace and confidence CleanX plays with, you can expect him to rocket up this ladder over the coming weeks.
Advanced Season Stats
Overall
KD: 1.15
Slayer Rating: 96.6
aKD: 1.20
TES: 60.9%
Hardpoint
KD: 1.13
Kills per 10 minutes: 27.1
Hill Time per 10 minutes: 51.7
Damage per 10 minutes: 4516.7
SND
KD: 1.41
Kills per round: 0.89
ADR: 171.8
Opening Duel Win Percentage: 50.0%
Control
KD: 1.11
Kills per 10 minutes: 22.9
Caps per ATK Round: 1.4
Damage per 10 minutes: 4313.0
