For the first pick of the 2016 NFL Draft, the Los Angeles Rams selected California native Jared Goff from the University of Berkeley. The 21-year-old quarterback will be entrusted to bring professional football to the forefront of LA's bustling entertainment scene, as the Rams returned to its former home of almost 50 years this offseason after playing in St. Louis for 20. It'll be up to the golden haired gunslinger to turn around a franchise that has failed to make the postseason in over a decade.
Keeping in the spirit of the draft, how would an all-purpose esports selection go down?
You're the owner of a new esports franchise. You are on the clock with the first pick in the draft, and you have the ability to select any competitive video game player in the world. Who would you choose, like the Rams did, to lead your club into the future? Would you pick someone like Call of Duty's Matthew "Nadeshot" Haag with his 1.59 million Twitter following and brand presence? Or would you go with someone like Smash 4's Gonzalo "ZeRo" Barrios, a player who has systematically dominated his title of choice since it began?
Let's see some of the picks our readers chose as their #1 pick in the Esports Draft:
Søren "Bjergsen" Bjerg
@ESPN_Esports definitely @Bjergsen 👍🏻
— Melonie Mac (@MelonieMac) April 28, 2016
@MelonieMac @ESPN_Esports yay :D honored.
— Søren Bjerg (@Bjergsen) April 29, 2016
Søren "Bjergsen" Bjerg as the first overall pick wouldn't be a surprise. He has the brand power (651k Twitter Followers), the talent (two-time league MVP), and the pedigree when it comes to winning. While he might not be in the top five players currently worldwide when it comes to skill -- this is where I point to the nation of South Korea -- there is no argument he's one of the most mechanically gifted players on the globe today.
Down-to-earth, talented, and widely popular? Not much else you can ask for from your top pick.
Lim "BoxeR" Yo Hwan
@ESPN_Esports Boxer, because I'm an old man and you young whippersnappers need a lesson on the esports legends of yore.
— Michale Lalor (@ESHDrexxin) April 28, 2016
Hm, Lim "BoxeR" Yo Hwan, the man known as the Emperor in Korean esports. The Godfather of the competitive video game boom in South Korea, Boxer would be a better choice as a GM or owner than a player today. Still, even if he's past his prime as a player, his return in either StarCraft: Brood War or Starcraft II would prompt a sea of devoted fans like we've never seen before in esports for his return. It'd be similar to Michael Jordan's coming out of retirement for the Washington Wizards back in the early 2000's.
You wouldn't win a lot of games, but you'd sure be making a lot of money from people wanting to see the legend back at it one more time.
Matthew "FormaL" Piper?
@ESPN_Esports the only correct answer is @OpTic_FormaL.
— Clint Evans (@Maven) April 28, 2016
Why not Matthew "FormaL" Piper? He's one of the few professionals in esports history who has been able to conquer two different titles: Halo and Call of Duty. When it comes to game popularity, Call of Duty is on a steady rise when it comes to viewers, and his 400k+ Twitter followers means you'd be getting a player with a strong base of fans behind him. Also, with how unpredictable competitive gaming can be when it comes to length of popularity for a single title, drafting FormaL would give you a player that possesses the skill to transfer to a new FPS if CoD falls off.
Gonzalo "ZeRo" Barrios
@ESPN_Esports @TSMZeRo no contest
— Juan Muniz (@ShounenLink) April 28, 2016
As mentioned previously, if you're looking for dominance in a title then look no further than ZeRo. He is the current king of Smash 4, and it's primetime breaking news any time he drops a set in his game of choice. Although Smash might not be as popular an esport compared to the likes of League, Dota 2, or Counter-Strike, the individual nature of the esport does mean you don't have to worry about how a single player fits in with the rest of a team.
If you draft the Chilean Smasher first overall, you know what you're getting. A hard worker, the top player in his game, and the type of person who is continually trying to grow his brand to reach the likes of the Bjergsen's and Formal's of the scene.
Olof "olofmeister" Kajbjer
@ESPN_Esports Oh, Fnatic's Olofm, for sure. He's the best player in the world atm and a big (if not the biggest) part of the team's success.
— Marie Silfverberg (@_MrsMusic) April 28, 2016
Here's an interesting one: Counter-Strike: Global Offensive's Olof "olofmeister" Kajbjer. On the surface, this seems like a slam dunk of a first pick:
● Best player in the world
● Playing in the game primed to overtake League of Legends as the top esport by the end of the year
● Star player of one of the most dominant teams in competitive video game history
● Marketable
Only problem? He's currently sidelined with an injury. Would you have the guts to select a player with health issues as your first overall pick? We've seen it happen countless times in the NBA. A team sees a can't-miss prospect at the center position, and the only problem is the player has issues with injuries. They have all the tools and size to be one of the greats all-time, but their durability is a huge question mark.
As the Portland Trailblazers will tell you with its selections of Sam Bowie (1984, selected over Michael Jordan) and Greg Oden (2007, selected over Kevin Durant), injuries are the great equalizer in all of sports and can destroy any draft day aspirations.
Syed Sumail "Suma1L" Hassan
@ESPN_Esports @SumaaaaiL because he's still young and has potential for growth. He'll be one of the best Dota players in a few years
— Return of Fable (@ReturnofFable) April 28, 2016
If you want someone who has a possible decade more of being in his prime, look no further than Dota 2's Syed Sumail "Suma1L" Hassan. He's 17-years-old, already a world champion, and has a polarizing personality that will make your fans love him and haters tune in to see him hopefully lose. He can be brash in his actions online, but so have various hall of famers in their traditional sport careers. Kobe Bryant wasn't always beloved by the media and opposing fans, but he ended his career as one of the best players in basketball history and made himself and his organization tons of money while accomplishing it.
We watch esports for the stories, heated play, and fiery personalities like Suma1l. If we wanted to watch computers against each other, we would just turn on A.I. mode.