UZI: OMG’S GAME-CHANGING PICKUP

Team OMG have always focused a great deal of their resources towards marketing and building their image. At the 2014 World Championship, we got to see a taste of that identity.

They’re a close group of friends who spend time together outside the game. Not to mention their roster is the only one to not have experienced any permanent core changes outside of role swaps since the start of LPL in Spring 2013.

Despite looking strong throughout 2014 and holding first place through most of the LPL regular season, OMG have failed to win a single title in China since November of 2013. This may change for 2015 LPL Spring, as the team has made the bold move to replace Guo “san” Junliang in favor of two-time World Championship finalist, Jian “Uzi” Zihao, as starting AD carry. It was definitely time for a change, the only question is this is the right one?

Beyond giving OMG fans what they want, the Uzi acquisition signals a possible departure from a group of friends who just happen to be really good at League of Legends, to an OMG that wants to dominate. Almost every other roster in China is moving to pick up big name Korean players, but OMG made a blockbuster move closer to home. The Uzi pickup is a signal that the team is pledging to win LPL with an all Chinese roster, whatever it takes.

THE GAMBLE

Time and again, we’ve seen OMG capable of dominating the LPL regular season, but faltering at the finish line when it comes to taking home the title. At Worlds, they surprised most spectators by crushing through their series against Korean powerhouse, NaJin White Shield. Only to later lose to Uzi and his band of Royal Clubbers. It’s unclear what exactly goes wrong with OMG in these situations, but it seems unlikely that picking up Uzi will fix all of their ails. Even so, it might be a good start.

The main concern lies primarily with a dissonance in playstyles. When fans saw Uzi at Worlds, it was as the center of attention. Both Royal Club in 2013 and Star Horn Royal Club (SHRC) in 2014 focused on building compositions around Uzi, with picks like Orianna and Janna, and funneling gold his direction to allow him to carry.

This could lead to a stylistic mismatch for Uzi and the rest of the team, as traditionally, OMG builds more flexible compositions and distributes gold evenly. During the 2014 Worlds group stage, OMG had a nearly perfect split of damage dealt to champions by Gao “Gogoing” Diping, Yin “Loveling” Le, Yu “Cool” Jiajun, and san.

We know from SHRC’s two most successful weeks in LPL, when they 2-0’d both OMG and Edward Gaming, that Uzi is capable of sharing the wealth. During this time, Lei “corn” Wen even picked up more kills than Uzi.

Uzi has also shown stylistic flexibility. When he played mid lane for Royal Club Huang Zhu during the first half of the 2014 LPL Spring, his play style altered drastically. He spent most of the game outside his own lane, ganking for side lanes, and giving up kills to his allies. The move proved his adaptable playstyle and that he's capable of sharing the spotlight.

If OMG can harness this more supportive Uzi playstyle, and continue to run flexible compositions, the team will once again be a front-runner for first place in LPL. The only question remaining, then, is whether this slight alteration in image from a team of friends to a team of strong Chinese players will push them over a road block. OMG has the resources available and a massive fanbase behind them. Time will tell if they can achieve their first tournament victory since November of 2013.