I don't personally want a Malz rework but

Isn't it just a liiiittle bit of an issue if even the casters for official events (like MSI) are saying things like "you only pick Malzahar for the ultimate" and "he's not worth being a phase 1 pick"? The only situations they've given Malz ANY credit all MSI were for good two-camp leashes or maybe getting lucky with your ults on someone without QSS and NOT getting burst down/cc'd during it yourself. Overall, they just attribute him to being a bad pick in comparison to other supports/mages.

Trick didn't even get that much flak for his Nunu picks, even when he performed poorly. Yet players with decent-to-good performances on Malz were criticized for their champ choice.

I dunno, I feel like if the only pros we can consider for Malz are "Maybe a good leash once in a while" and "just hope they have no QSS/CC," he's not in a good spot. In terms of "Defined strengths/weaknesses" those defined strengths are kind of garbo.