What's the difference between original & Academy teams?
For example, like Cloud9 and Cloud9 Academy. Are they like two completely different teams, or is Academy sort of like a "training session" sort of team?
2 Comments
Training session... more or less.
Same as NBA and NBA-D league.
To an extent, Academy Teams serve as a competitive facilitator to developing players. This began with the Scouting Grounds last year in which 10 of the 20 players there were picked up by an org and from there, additional scouting and recruiting formed the rosters to develop the environment (or what is as of this Summer now).
I wouldn't necessarily call it a training session as the competitive environment and format is more or less the exact same as the LCS minus the Worlds Qualification terms. And I wouldn't say it's similar to that of the NBA as the teams were able to flex out their roster at will and within a set few veteran restrictions (all until the playoff roster locks of course). It's not like a player is locked to a particular division of main or academy.
To answer the question at hand, the teams are separate but are also 10-man rosters at the discretion of how the team permits it and flexes their roster as a result - Cloud9 being the key example of utilizing talent in both leagues.