San Francisco Shock vs Houston Outlaws

To close out the day, we have a fairly interesting scrap between the reigning, defending champions San Francisco Shock and an unlikely challenger -- Houston Outlaws. On paper, this about as one-sided a shellacking as you can get, but it doesn't mean top-tier play will be absent. On the contrary.

This match, in itself, is fairly enticing, if anything because everyone wants to see the Shock dominate and flex over their opposition. Watching them play is always a masterclass and it's hard not to tune in whenever they're scheduled to show up. Still, this time things are a bit different -- their 2019 OWL MVP Sinatraa, one of the most talented DPS players of all time, has decided to retire from competitive Overwatch and move over to Riot Games' Valorant. That's not only a huge shocker, but it also means that San Francisco has lost one of their most potent catalysts.

Now, make no mistake, they're still one of the best and most talented teams in the world even without such an incredible player (a testament to their deep roster), but it's still a noticeable loss. Sinatraa was always able to clutch things out when it mattered the most and not having him as a starter will surely affect their strength and long-term potential at least ever so slightly.

Fortunately, they don't have a particularly tough test in front of them this time as they're facing Houston -- a solid albeit horrendously flawed mid-tier team. The Outlaws have at least some semblance of momentum after going five games with Dallas last week in one of the best Texan el clasicos of all time, but nearly winning against the Fuel is by no means an achievement worthy of mentioning. Their wins came against some of the worst teams in the entire League, and it's quite obvious that they're nothing more than a passable mid-tier gatekeeper (at best).

Even if they come out the gates swinging and play the best Overwatch of their lives, they still shouldn't be able to compete with the Shock on even footing. Going with San Francisco on this one is the only logical choice.