SPL XVI Pre-Tournament Series: Rookie Prospect Report

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Introduction

Whether you're a veteran player of the site or a brand new user, getting a shot on a Smogon Premier League roster can prove difficult. There are a variety of factors at play that can range from limited availability in your preferred tier due to high-level competition, stacked sign-ups from proven players, lack of recent tournament results, or maybe the managers just aren't great at scouting new talent. That's why we're here, to help increase the visibility of new players.

As a former manager, it was extremely fulfilling to hit on a cheap or first-time player. First-time participants in SPL have not historically done well, as it takes time to acclimate to the competitive team tournament environment, and let's face it, SPL is one of the most high-pressure environments anyone will experience on the entire website. Taking a chance on a player can be high-risk, and it can also be the difference maker that leads the managers to hoisting the trophy at the end of the season.

In SPL XV, there were 11 SPL rookies that walked away with a positive record. This shows just how important it is to be on point with scouting as a manager. The Dragonspiral Tyrants were the victors of SPL XV, with positive rookie campaigns from Dridri457 (6-4), myjava (7-3), and Mada (4-1). With each of these players being only 3k credits (Mada being picked up after the original auction), the scouting, coaching, and ability to rely on cheap value players paid off tremendously. The Alpha Ruiners (oldspicemike, 8-2), Circus Maximus Tigers (JJ09LIE, 7-4), and Indie Scooters (hellom, 10-1) all made playoffs thanks to a rookie SV OU leading the team.

In an effort to help new faces break into the scene, we went ahead and created a master scouting ranking of all players who had a positive showing in a relevant Smogon tournament this year. Furthermore, Larry, a fairy, and myself all have former managing experience through official and unofficial Premier League formats and have taken the opportunity to share some insight on some of our prospects and who we could potentially consider going after if we were managing this year.

Enjoy the piece!

-Dave

Criteria

Our ranking system is a compilation of positive (+BD) performances throughout the official and unofficial tournament circuit for SPL-related tiers. In order to first qualify for this list, you must A) have never played SPL before or B) have played 3 games or less in their only previous SPL appearance.

The goal of this list is to highlight the best performances of the year through an objective point system. Please note that this list does not factor in variables such as personality, vibes, chat presence, scouting, team building, or other various factors that may go into the decision to draft someone. This is purely an objective ranking of one's success playing competitive tournaments.

Point System

Officials

Circuit / Invitationals

Team Tournaments:

• Official team tours: 1000 * wins (i.e.: 7,000 for a 7-0 season in an official PL)
• Unofficial team tours: 500 * wins (i.e.: 3500 for a 7-0 season in an unofficial PL)

In order to reward stronger records, all points are multiplied by win%, with the exception of Smogon Tour Top 16, which will default to 50% because 0-1 would mean 0 points for getting into Smogon Tour playoffs. I think we can all agree that a 12-0 run in a Global Championship is more impressive than 12-6, but both get you the win. Hence, multiplying by win%.

Note: This table was compiled without regard to current SPL sign-ups and may have some missing information or errors. Data collection was up to the end of SCL and Top Cut for Smogon Masters.

With the criteria set, please enjoy our filterable table of potential SPL hopefuls!

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All SV OU SS OU SM OU ORAS OU BW OU DPP OU ADV OU GSC OU RBY OU

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Analyst Section

Dave

kingofking

Taking risks on ORAS players is often tradition for me as a manager. I have had success spending less on ORAS in the past, and I have also had it blow up in my face. Cheap success includes Santu in SPL XI and PJ in SPL XIII. With the year that kingofking has had in ORAS, one could definitely make a case for them as a low-end starter or substitute.

The results speak for themselves; a 7-2 masters bracket, a 6-1 ORAS Cup, a 10-3 ORAS Global semifinalist, a 6-2 ORAS OU Summer Seasonal, and a 5-3 ROAPL in ORAS gave them a W/L record of 34-11 throughout those tournaments and a +23 BD. Now, factors such as opponents played and ease of schedule often have to be taken into account, but with their tournament play and passion being exclusively on ORAS, kingofking could be an SPL staple in a few years and would be someone I would definitely spend a cheap purchase on if I needed to buy low on ORAS or needed Gen 6 support.

Hiko

You'll have to dig a bit to find Hiko on this table, but that's simply because he didn't play many tournaments this year. With a 2-2 record in SCL in SV OU, his schedule wasn't easy, taking wins off of Storm Zone and newcomer JJ09LIE in his brief time in the spotlight. Primarily, his qualifications for making our ranking were due to his 3-0 record for team France in the World Cup of Pokémon.

It's encouraging to see a .500 record as a rookie in their first official team tournament, as it shows they can handle the pressure. I estimate his price range would be anywhere from 5-8k, making him a cost-effective option for teams who may not load as many funds into SV OU. Having someone like Hiko, who could go .500 or better at the sub-10k price tag, allows me to plug him into slot 2 or 3 for my SV OU core as a potentially self-sufficient option while focusing on more pressing areas of need for my team.

charizardsnuts

ADV has one of the most passionate communities in the game, and breaking into the scene at the SPL level is no easy feat. ADV stands out as a tier with higher-end price tags, in large part due to it being a tier in which the top-end players always crank out consistent records. New ADV talent doesn't always make its way onto an SPL roster, as it could be a major risk. However, one player I would have my eye on is charizardsnuts. And I can already hear many of our more established veterans saying, Who? Let me explain.

charizardsnuts had a hell of a year in 2024 on the unofficial tournament circuit. Sporting a 19-5 total record, all in ADV OU, their +14 BD makes them someone to keep an eye on. Most notable for their ADV OU Winter Seasonal win earlier in the year, they also won ADVPL, finishing with a 5-3 record and also capping ROAPL off with a 5-2 record.

Good talent is hard to find, and charizardsnuts has shown they can win against good players, with wins over Star, Endill, and Skarpherim in Seasonal and CyberOdin✝ in ADVPL. Although they are relatively green to the tournament scene, having started ADV tours in 2023, their quick success and list of accomplishments puts them on my personal manager radar as a sub or low-end starter later in the auction.

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Larry

PkelSweeTforU

Pkel SweeTforU is a DPP player who has only recently started dabbling in SV. I was going to write about him at length regardless of his endeavors in SV, perhaps partially out of nepotism since he is my friend, but he truly deserves it since he managed to claim one of the top positions on this ranking for himself despite only playing two tiers.

Pkel is not only incredibly sweet but also won this year's DPP Global Championship in dominant fashion without dropping a single set, a win streak of 14 series. This impressive feat is backed up by his success in team tournaments, which is ultimately more relevant to SPL than individual tournaments because it shows that they can hold their own in a team setting, as he achieved a combined record of 11-3 in DPP between DPPPL and RoAPL.

While he prefers to play DPP in this year's SPL, his SV prowess cannot be underestimated either, netting him a 7-4 record in the most recent SCL with a notable 2-0 performance in playoffs, grinding out an incredibly close nail-biter against myjava in the finals of the tournament. I am confident that this player will be one of the better DPP players in this year's SPL while also providing valuable support to the SV core. The dude is a great teammate, and I had the luck to be able to experience this first-hand.

DugZa

Most probably know DugZa as a Monotype or PU player, considering he is a former Monotype Tier Leader who played PU in last year's SCL and was his team's manager as well as PU support in this year's SCL. However, I think that DugZa cannot be underestimated in the various generations of OU either. This year alone he managed to pull off a 4-0 record against WCOP's SV OU pool, facing notable opponents such as mncmt as well as a semifinals finish in OST. Furthermore, at the time I'm writing this, he is a quarterfinalist in the ongoing Smogon Masters tournament.

I personally know DugZa as an active teammate who puts a lot of effort into his own preparation and cares a lot about his and the team's performance. I believe him to continue his trend of consistently doing well in official tournaments in this edition of SPL as well.

Even though DugZa signed up for every Fairy generation, I would personally draft him for a SV starting slot expecting him to get a positive record there, but I also wouldn't ignore the option of pivoting into ORAS, SM, or SS out in case one of those slots heavily underperforms. One could also try to draft his boyfriend Floss, who, by the way, made top 16 in this years OST, as part of the SV core as well.

RufflesPro

I am genuinely baffled by this guy. In early 2023, he sabotaged my GermanyPL team with Iron Head Scizor, and I thought he was the worst player of all time. A year later, he blasts my ass in ORAS Globals. A few months after that, he goes 4-1 in WCoP. (granted, one of his opponents was Vileman, but still) That growth curve is not normal.

While I didn't interact with RufflesPro as much as with my other two picks for this writeup, I still have high hopes for him in the upcoming SPL. His understanding of the metagame seems to be as good as it gets, resulting in very good teams being built and loaded, and his play is certainly no slouch either.

I think that RufflesPro can work as a self-sufficient ORAS slot, nabbing a positive record for himself for a relatively cheap price and as a result be a good value buy for any manager who is looking for a competent ORAS slot on the cheaper side.

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a fairy

NoName6293

In a tournament established over a scale of years, it’s rare to see a new face pop up and so quickly establish themselves as a top option within a single tournament cycle, especially in an older generation. This is the case for NoName6293, the highest-placing player in the algorithm and an ORAS main with multiple victories in old gen circuits already.

Having only signed up for this SPL and the previous one, NoName went on a tear throughout 2024, winning the ORAS Summer Seasonal and placing podium in both the ORAS Global Championship and the ORAS Cup, their worst placement in the tier coming at a 5-6th placement way back in the Winter Seasonal. This is supplemented by a 4th place finish in the SM Summer Seasonal, an SM Smogon Tour win, and a DPP Summer Seasonal victory, enabling NoName to provide support in multiple generations aside from their own starting slot.

With a proven team tour record, such as a 4-2 record in GSC OU in GSCPL and a 7-2 in ORAS in RoAPL, SPL should be the next step up for NoName. As a new player who could break the 10k barrier at auction, a lot of attention will be on NoName during draft prep for each manager team needing ORAS in their lineup, and then through the regular season as potentially the most expensive SPL rookie. A ‘no name’ no longer.

Antonazz

Third place in the SM OU Winter Seasonal and a respectable 2-1 in WCoP for a middle-of-the-pack Team France, you could be forgiven for not paying too much attention to this user, especially after failing to play in the OU Circuit Championship he qualified for. His second place finish in the Official Smogon Tournament earlier this year reveals the truth of the matter, turning Antonazz from a potential overlook to a name that has to be seriously considered for anyone looking for a solid SV pick-up.

While Antonazz has yet to sign up as of this writing and had forfeited out of the OU Circuit Championship, any team choosing to disregard the potential signup by establishing a locked-in SV lineup plan is putting themselves at risk to watch a potentially cheap Antonazz run roughshod over the field for another team.

It’s always a surprise when an otherwise overlooked player stakes their claim to greatness by nearly grabbing one of the most coveted trophies of all time. Antonazz is a force to be reckoned with should he sign up, which all spectators should be hoping for to see some of the best SV OU there is to offer. Whether or not he does, or whether or not managers pay him the proper respect when he does, is yet to be seen.

LpZ

Regardless of format or generation, we’re all playing very similar games. The skills transfer between tiers, with many players showing success across varied formats across generations. Some players almost seem to transcend the idea of having a “home tier,” maintaining consistent success anywhere they go. Such is the case for LpZ, this year’s Grand Slam winner. But wait, you may ask, Grand Slam’s the low tier tour, isn’t it? What value does it have here?

It can be easy to overlook successful players in non-applicable formats, especially when they don’t have a strong list of accomplishments for SPL-relevant tiers. LpZ has no such concerns, however, with a 7-1 Masters record into a Top 16 placement, a semifinalist placing in the ADV Swiss tour, and a 6-2 record in RoAPL alongside it, as well as quarterfinal placings in SS and SV seasonals in the first half of 2024. LpZ has proven again and again that no format or generational difference will prevent him from putting up strong numbers.

With a signup already on the books locking him out of only RBY, LpZ should be strongly considered after years of going under the radar. The variety of generations he can slot into safely should result in many teams considering him in a wide range of possible lineups, from ADV to SV to other Fairy generations. They shouldn’t be the most expensive rookie picked up, but the flexibility of someone who can start in multiple tiers may help managers during the auction either hedge their bets or pick up the pieces of a crumbling draft strategy.

Conclusion

As the auction gets underway and the strongest names get picked up, pay attention to the managers and who they select as purses tighten. No campaign for the SPL trophy is successful without proper investigation of lesser-known tournament names and cheap purchases towards the end of the auction. In many cases, these can make or break a team's strategy, and with countless tournaments to prove your worth, you could be the next name on a manager's personal prospect report for consideration. The names we went into are a small selection of players by some people not managing teams, and with a minimum of 150 players on one roster or another and more managers than ever in recent history, there are sure to be plenty of names seeking to make their first mark on the tournament.

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