Huke Joins LA Thieves, TJHaLy Moved to Reserve
Today, the LA Thieves unveiled Huke as the last member of the starting roster. He was transferred from Dallas Empire to the LA Thieves after a short stint on the bench at Dallas Empire. Huke will replace TJHaLy on the LA Thieves. Earlier, TJHaLy announced on Twitter that he had been benched by the team.
Huke will complete the new LA Thieves roster, which also includes Kenny, Drazah, and Venom. Despite a stellar performance in Stage I, the star SMG player was benched from Dallas’s starting lineup in Stage III. Fans and official sources alike were conflicted on the official reason for the benching. Empire player Crimsix made public comments on the benching, including a cryptic quote for fans to “look at the minimap.” This suggested the Dallas team could not agree with Huke in terms of playstyle or pacing. However, fans and media have continued to speculate that Huke was benched for unstated personal reasons.
He was a phenomenal performer in Stage I, and one of Breaking Point’s early MVP candidates for the 2021 season. Since then, his performances have dipped precipitously. In Stage II, Huke averaged a 1.06 K/D in Hardpoint, a 0.87 K/D in Search, and a 0.88 K/D in Control (0.97 K/D overall).
Huke 2021 Season Snapshot
Nadeshot’s squad is banking on Huke’s return to form and his impact in respawn to be a key difference maker. This is the third move the LA Thieves have made this season in the search for a championship caliber roster. So far, they have benched Temp for Venom, Slasher for Drazah, and now TJHaLy for Huke.
Despite TJHaLy’s strong contributions this season in Control and Search, there are areas where the nascent Thieves continue to lag behind. TJ currently sports a 0.87 Hardpoint K/D on the season, which puts him 2nd to last in the CDL among all players who have played five or more matches (only Parasite has a lower Hardpoint K/D). From a production perspective, Huke has been one of the top Hardpoint players this season.
TJHaLy 2021 Season Snapshot
LA Thieves have been one of the most active teams in CDL, turning over 75% of their starting roster (3 out of 4 players) since the beginning of the season. Based on these moves and public comments from Nadeshot, it is clear the LA Thieves are here to win.
Questions abound for this new team. Will the young guns in Drazah and Venom continue to improve? Will Huke return to form, and will Kenny continue to be a top 3 main AR? LA Thieves have been proactive with roster changes, and despite a few hiccups, one thing is certain: they are finally poised to field a roster that is capable of winning a championship.
