Ok, in order to make this interesting, I will post my own list. This is probably harder than I originally envisioned, so this list should at least give people a baseline and ideally make them have to think of less players. My criteria will be the following: if you had to pick one player to win a game, with your life hanging in the balance, and a roulette randomly picked a tier, who would you choose? I think skill should transcend tiers and the best players should be able to play anything. Of course, the sheet also matters a bit, because there are some people who seemingly rarely pop off despite being very skilled on the surface, which scares me. As such, versatility is very important to me; if someone is only good at one old gen tier, I will probably not put them on here. In addition, people who perform well in tiebreaks will be high as well. I think peak bro fist would be #1 on this list for me, but obviously, we are in 2022 right now so. My list is also reflective of potential and not just results because of the criteria I am using, so some names may seem weird to others.
Honestly, as I was writing this list, it became more of a general 'feeling' thing, so a lot of these may seem weird. But, here you go.
1. ABR
I don't think I need to explain this. He has displayed immense versatility and pretty much always wins. His poor SPL 12 performance is really the only blemish on his record, and the fact that a 5-7 performance is considered some absolute atrocity really sums up how reliable he has been. After teaming him up with him this SPL, I can safely say I always had full confidence in the clock to pull things out. I honestly don't think this is close and anyone who puts someone besides ABR 1st is delusional.
2. Star
Star is the best player I can most envision playing absolutely any tier. He obviously started out with LC, but he has become an old gen monster in recent years and he is obviously skilled in lower tiers as well. I would have some hesitance in putting him this high but his insane SPL 12 performance that culminated in him putting his balls to the wall vs. Eo and clutching the win gives me a lot of confidence in him. Obviously, he doesn't have an individual, but again, my list is not completely about results.
3. SoulWind
SW finally got the monkey off his back a few tournaments ago, and his consistency over the years, especially in individuals, is honestly insane. He cares a lot about the game for someone who has been playing for over a decade at this point, and it's hard to not have faith in him to win any given matchup. It's really hard to put him any lower.
4. Tricking
I am now abandoning the Jerk, fuck it. I don't know what it is, but I just believe in Tricking to win. He's obviously achieved a lot over the years and is certainly very versatile. He plays less than he used to, but really? Are we going to doubt him? I am most certainly not. That being said, his play vs. Jyt in World Cup semifinals certainly scares me a bit LOL But, you know what, whatever. I believe in him still.
5. Empo
I can't believe I'm drinking the kool-aid, fuck me LOL Whatever. Something about him just exudes confidence. He did struggle in World Cup, but you know, I just think he will win when it matters. He's easily one of the best players in modern history and it's hard to put him any lower than this.
6. McMeghan
I think Roro is just generally very solid. One of the best players ever, it's hard to really go wrong here. He may have peaked a while ago, but he is still playing Classic and doing pretty well with his tryhard playing on main strats. Once upon a time, he did destroy everyone in Grand Slam lol...but honestly, I just think he rarely misplays and he should be able to thrive in whatever tier.
7. beatiful
He may be a clicker, but it's hard to deny that bea wins. His recent team tour performances have been pretty insane; his SCL performance is without question one of the best team tour performances of all time; he essentially took down the best OUer on almost every team and racked up an insane amount of advantage against the opposition. I trust him to win.
I'm actually thinking now, hm. To me, these are the clear top 7 players I would trust the most to win.
8. TDK
People are going to say this is some jerk effect, but I think not having TDK in the top 10 is insane. The guy's versatility is crazy and he has been a proven player for eons at this point. Obviously, he had some down years, but to me, there are cases against a lot of people after this, so I don't really mind. He's definitely good.
9. Luthier
Luthier always wins. Nothing else needs to be said. In my book, that's enough to call him good bop. He has displayed insane versatility and he has improved. I find it very hard to put him higher than this, though.
10. Insult
I just think Insult is very, very solid. He usually always manages to do well and has been a rock for MemeEast for years. I've never really disliked him and I unironically think he could play and do well in a random tier if he wanted to. Personally, I just think he's good, and that's enough for 10th.
11. Garay Oak
Garay is like, the reverse-Luthier. I think he is a better player, but he just never seems to do that well in team tours. That really scares me LOL I have to acknowledge his potential though and he is very respected; his 2-game tiebreak run against SoulWind and Ajna is still one of the most impressive feats in Smogon history. He didn't get tilted after getting lucked in the Grand Slam finals in LC and still managed to bring it home. I'll trust him enough to put him this high.
12. Punny
I think Punny is certainly solid, and he has proven his skill in a variety of metagames. I would say he doesn't win quite as often as I would like, but there knocks against everyone remaining so, I don't really mind. Solid enough. I see him as slightly worse than Garay so this feels like a solid spot.
13. Christo
I'm saying it rn, anyone who doesn't have Christo top 20 is on crack. This guy always wins. IDC what he is playing, there's no way this man's not going positive. He is insanely consistent; he even managed to do well in the variance madhouse. I don't think anyone else will put him top 20, but too bad. I believe in him; that's the goat. If he signed up for SCL, I promise you he would get 6+ wins with ease. I honestly really want to put him top 10 LMAO but, whatever.
14. blunder
We may be going a bit off the board here, but there's a reason blunder is always expensive in team tours lol. His style is different than a lot of people above him. It feels like a crime to not have blunder higher ngl but we are in 2022, so I will leave him here for now.
15. xray
xray's display against Eo in the tiebreak is still one of the best displays of Pokemon I have ever seen. It is legitimately insane that he was almost able to win that. He's been a top player for a long time now, and I honestly really enjoy watching the way he plays.
16. Anti
Anti has always been good. He's very versatile and can play a variety of tiers. Even in 2022, I think he's generally solid and can adapt to pretty much any metagame as long as you dangle some $200 monetary reward in front of him. That's enough to make the list.
17. CBB
If I'm going to put Garay 11th on this list, I have to put CBB on it. Again, there is a reason he is always expensive in team tours. He never really pops off that much record-wise, but I do believe he is a good player. He is very creative and cares an insane amount about the game.
18. Heroic Troller
After looking at people, I realized that Troller unironically might just be the play LOL I didn't think I would have him on it, but his ability to master the meme tier is honestly absurd. He may not be as versatile, but if he was able to understand the RBY meta to that extent, I think he could do it for other tiers if he needed to.
19. aim
I've always thought Joey was good. His Grand Slam performance just gives me an excuse to put him on here; his versatility is literally out of this world, and he has been pretty solid in official tours over his long career.
20. Finchinator
This one was very hard LOL There were a lot of options here, but ultimately, I'll give to Finch after his masterful World Cup performance. He's obviously been solid for a while, and we all know how much he cares about the game, despite ALLEGEDLY being less active than before. He can take the last spot for his dedication.
Honorable Mentions:
M Dragon (big fan, honestly might be 21st), bro fist (if he played more, I would easily put him on here. I would trust peak bro fist with my life any day), FlamingVictini (similar to Christo but has done less in recent years), TJ (been really impressively lately), Bush (ascending like Luthier, could easily make it soon), Ajna (maybe if it wasn't 2022...but certainly really good when in form), BIHI (clutch), Welli0u (no one mentioned him, he's fire), FLCL (amq main), FOMG (bop old gens), dice (always a fan), lax (definitely insane when in form, could easily make the list depending on how he does this tour)
