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This week's episode of SmackDown will officially kick off the 2020 WWE Draft. The two-night affair will reshape all three brands of WWE as stars will travel between RAW, SmackDown, and NXT.
The biggest move for SmackDown last year was Roman Reigns joining as the No.1 pick. It is difficult to see the Big Dog moving brands again since he finally has the Universal Championship after over a year on the Blue brand. He's just started a run with a totally new character alongside Paul Heyman.
In that year, we've seen Reigns come and go and return with a fury. We have also had Matt Riddle join the Blue brand and Mandy Rose "traded" to RAW. The Forgotten Sons joined SmackDown but were taken off of TV shortly after their main roster debut. How things will play out remains to be seen but here are six WWE Superstars that should remain on SmackDown during the WWE Draft.
#6 Matt Riddle should remain on WWE SmackDown
As mentioned in the introduction, Matt Riddle was one of the few stars from NXT to join the Blue brand in 2020. He had a good run in the Black and Gold brand and is a former NXT Tag Team Champion. The Original Bro made a big splash in his debut as he challenged then Intercontinental Champion AJ Styles. He lost to Styles but won most of his matches after that.
In two of his last three matches, however, he has lost via pinfall. He was pinned in a Fatal Four Way to determine Reigns' challenger at Clash of Champions and in a singles match against King Corbin. Hopefully, his winning ways will pick back up in October because he has a bright future in WWE.
A big reason why he should remain on SmackDown is because he started out there just a few months ago. It would be strange to ship him to RAW so soon after his debut but stranger things have happened. The SmackDown mid-card needs to be revamped during the WWE Draft because outside of Riddle, it is severely lacking in younger and new challengers. Riddle is someone to build the future of the Blue brand around. FOX also needs some legitimate athletes in its promotional material and Riddle is a former UFC fighter. It's too soon for him two switch nights, although his saga with Corbin needs to be done with.
#5 Sami Zayn should remain on WWE SmackDown
Sami Zayn returned with a bang following WWE SummerSlam. His presence and return was a welcome sight for a mid-card that had been lacking. Zayn's promos are among the best in WWE and he picked up right where he left off. His win in the triple threat ladder match at WWE Clash of Champions was a brilliant one as he was victorious with his mind and not with illegal outside help. Since it was a ladder match, the only rule was that the winner was determined by hauling down the titles.
Since his return to WWE TV, he has dispatched former champions AJ Styles and Jeff Hardy. Because he came out on top, one or both of those WWE stars might be heading to RAW. If Zayn was getting a change of scenery, he would have lost. That still doesn't mean that he won't be drafted by WWE RAW, but with Bobby Lashley a member of the Hurt Business and the United States Champion, it would mean a swap of both men. That won't happen with the Hurt Business engaged in an ongoing battle with RETRIBUTION.
While he has been a member of RAW during the brand split, his best time in WWE has been as a member of SmackDown. He fought alongside Kevin Owens against Daniel Bryan and Shane McMahon and he helped give a strong voice to the likes of Cesaro and Shinsuke Nakamura. When all is said and done, Zayn should remain on the brand where he has had the greatest impact, WWE SmackDown.
#4 Sasha Banks should remain on WWE SmackDown
Ever since Sasha Banks' return to action after last year's WWE SummerSlam, her entire partnership with Bayley has been leading to an inevitable showdown between the two friends. They've been attached at the hip since their days in NXT as they set a new standard for women's matches when battling over the NXT Women's Championship.
The two performers have primarily been allies on the main roster in WWE. But that all changed when Bayley turned on the Boss and ended the friendship following SummerSlam. Banks was brutally attacked but only missing from WWE TV for a week or two. The story that has been told between Bayley and Banks isn't over but they are battling each other for Bayley's title on the first night of the WWE Draft. A quick switch might mean that Bayley goes back to RAW and Banks stays on SmackDown. The division needs a big change because almost every member has had a shot at Bayley over her 500+ day reign. Lacey Evans has had more title shots than she needs and Nikki Cross has challenged when Evans hasn't.
Some female WWE stars like Naomi and Sonya Deville either had quick shots at the title or not a single title shot at all in Deville's case. With the Fiend/Alexa Bliss partnership, that could set up a heel Bliss challenging the Boss. Whatever happens, Banks needs to stay on SmackDown because she would get lost in the shuffle of dominant monsters (Nia Jax, Asuka, Shayna Baszler) and new stars (Bianca Belair, Baszler) if they stay on RAW.
#3 The Fiend and #2 Alexa Bliss should remain on WWE SmackDown
The WWE partnership of the year is just getting started. After a few months going back and forth between her usual self and her new, entranced version, Alexa Bliss and the Fiend are officially on the same page.
Bray Wyatt's alter-ego originally attacked Bliss to get into the psyche of his opponent Braun Strowman, but it didn't work. Strowman basically disowned any prior relationship between him and Bliss. He has remained the new monster version of his WWE character.
Bliss had been struggling to explain how she felt about the Fiend and how it was affecting her current relationships. Nikki Cross felt that her buddy was changed and Kevin Owens also tried to get some answers. That all came to a head last week on the Kevin Owens show after the Fiend attacked Owens. Bliss and Wyatt ended the segment hand in hand.
The whole storyline has taken place on WWE SmackDown and both Bliss and Wyatt have added some intrigue to Friday nights. While the Fiend's whole presentation is grandiose and would fit better into the three hours of RAW, this is one of the WWE storylines helping to anchor the Blue brand.
If one or both of the competitors are taken away from SmackDown due to the WWE Draft, it would gut the Blue brand of some great storytelling. The Red brand has RAW Underground, the 24/7 Championship scene, and two big factions in the Hurt Business and RETRIBUTION. It doesn't need this one as well. Reigns still has to have his one-on-one showdown with the Fiend over the Universal Championship.
#1 Roman Reigns should remain on WWE SmackDown
He said that SmackDown and WWE are "his island" and that he "is the Tribal Chief." Paul Heyman came out of the woodwork to be his advocate and it has helped to create the most interesting version of Roman Reigns during his entire WWE tenure.
Reigns' move to SmackDown was the biggest change in the 2019 WWE Draft and it was partially done to separate the Big Dog from Seth Rollins. They are two of the top stars in all of WWE and the company wanted a show for each to anchor. While Rollins isn't the WWE Champion, he's still heavily featured every week on the red brand.
While he could feasibly move back to WWE RAW, it would also mean that his current storyline with his cousins would have to be altered. WWE has still moved players to different brands while also continuing their planned storylines. It happened when Wyatt and Orton continued their WWE Championship feud even though they were no longer on the same brand.
Reigns is the flagship of WWE and has been the same for SmackDown since his big move last October. It took most of 2020 but he's finally the Universal Champion. His angle has helped to keep eyes on WWE SmackDown and it would hurt the Blue brand if he and Heyman jumped back to RAW.
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