I know ReDeYe has an article coming out about this soon, which I know will blow mine completely out the water as he has a lot wider perspective than me, but here's my thoughts on the draft, pick by pick. I won't pretend to know exactly what went on in the GMs minds throughout the draft, and they inevitably had a lot more information available than me, but this is the draft broken down from my perspective. Firstly, the European draft.

1st pick - REAL to Magnetik

The norwegian 1.6er played amazing over the weekend, and even though he wasn't entirely consistent, his ability really shone through. Heaton knows his potential from playing against him in 1.6, where he was one of the top European players, and if he can take that over to CS:S he will be an amazing pick.

RATING

10 / 10


2nd Pick - Fifflaren to Allianz

A somewhat controversial pick. Despite the undeniable skill of Fifflaren, he hasn't really managed to shine as much as some other players recently, and it was a real surprise to see him picked up this early. Jonas was obviously aiming to keep the cohesion of his team here, but in my opinion Nordqvist would have been a smarter choice, and either of them could have been saved for a later pick.

RATING

5 / 10


3rd Pick - Ferus to Magnetik

One of the most recognised players in Euro CS:Source, the guy's aim is crazy. Although he didn't impress that much in the combine, he has consistently been one of the best players in Europe in the past, and will undoubtedly return to that form soon. Great pick by Heaton.

RATING

9 / 10


4th Pick - majk to Allianz

Now this pick REALLY surprised me. I'm not trying to have a dig at majk here at all, but I was shocked to hear his name be called out. Although he's a good player, he didn't perform as well as expected in either LA or the combine, and there were plenty of people prepared to step into his shoes. When you have players like the fnatic boys, Warclown, noLa, giftig, and more available, it seems odd to get such a low impact player. BSL has stated that he wanted 3 fnatic players and only got 2, and unless majk raises his game in the upcoming weeks I can see him stepping down to allow for Proph.

RATING

3 / 10


5th Pick - Bryce to Magnetik

Although he had a bit of a dissapointing finish in the tournament, Bryce is a very fast racer who will only improve as time goes by, and partnered with Madness he will inevitably meet his potential.

RATING

8 / 10


6th Pick - Liefje to Allianz

Liefje is an incredibly hard working player who has definitely earned her spot over the past year. Her dedication to the game has paid off, and although she's not going to touch Vanessa, Hitomi1 or Mystik at the moment, by the time L.A. comes around I have full confidence that she will be up there with the best.

RATING

9 / 10


7th Pick - Istvan to Magnetik

After an intense bootcamp with ChrisyB for the last week, as well as beating him in the finals of the FIFA tournament in a close game, Istvan really showed the quality of player he is at the moment. With both Chud1k and Manyna doing disappointingly, it was refreshing to see that the GMs weren't stuck in there ways, and this was a really great pick.

RATING

9 / 10


8th Pick - Blaze to Allianz

The first pick on the road to fnatic's destruction was Blaze to Allianz. Although everyone expected a pick from fnatic here, Blaze surprised everyone, and there was a big gasp from the crowd. Blaze is undoubtedly a top player, and a really consistent player. However, Proph played so well throughout the combine, and Blaze was more of a background man. BSL is very concerned about his team's image as well as performance though, and Blaze presents the team perfectly, so a good pick overall.

RATING -

7 / 10


9th Pick - SkatanMilla to Magnetik

Although he suffered from a disappointing tournament, culminating with a big loss to Neiji in Round Two, SkatanMilla has been one of the top European players for a good while. Having recently finished 2nd in WCG 08, he has proven time and time again what a great player he is, and this was a smart pick by Heaton. It was a shame for Neji, who had a very strong tournament, but in the end Heaton went for the player with the most long term potential.

RATING

8 / 10


10th Pick - xertion to Allianz

Kind of similar choice to Blaze, and all my reasoning is similar. Although Milan is an undeniably strong player, he is a much lower impact player than Sandor. With the team Allianz had before this pick, they needed a strong AWPer to finish it off, and even though Milan has AWPed for fnatic in the past, he has only really taken over when Sandor hasn't been available, so this pick surprised me. However, this isn't to take anything away from xertion, as he is a very good player and incredibly professional.

RATING

7 / 10


Overall Scores
Magnetik - 44 / 50
Allianz - 31 / 50

I think Heaton got off to a much better start here, and although Jonas picked it up towards the end, he failed to come off best at the end of the draft. Although his team is also strong, a lot of the Allianz players were picked up at questionable times in the draft, and could have been saved for later dates. Magnetik's team is near perfect, with Miss being the only real weakness on an international level, and she was a protected player. If Magnetik realise their potential, I could see them really turning some heads at the World Finals in LA.