Why does the ranking system exist?
It exists to stratify the population based on skill, so that you are much more likely to have fair, closely matched games.
Now, what happens when you circumvent/game the ranking system?
The teams are not balanced, leading to unfair, one-sided games.
Since cheating is defined as: acting dishonestly or unfairly in order to gain an advantage, especially in a game or examination, smurfing is cheating.
QED
Smurfing is allowed. So you’re false reporting, even though you think it’s cheating.
To be fair, I don’t think GM players feel ashamed of their borders. Especially not, if they rub their SR into your face (why would they else mention it if they weren’t proud of it?).
Those peopse sound like they were just down there to bully lower ranked players.
I mean… I don’t think alt accounts are a form of cheating, but a 6stack is kinda a jerky move.
Evidence suggests smurfs and I’m not saying there aren’t lmfao. I’m saying evidence doesn’t suggest throwing or boosting because they’re all new accounts, claiming to be gm, and OP got rolled. That’s not cheating. It’s a jerk move but not cheating. Ur talking what if’s too. What if they are boosting? Well we don’t know so we can’t assume they are. What if they’re not trying their hardest? We don’t know so we have to assume they are and the game placed them around plat. We don’t know so don’t just jump in with a definite answer. Innocent until proven guilty.
I may be late, but if your skill is far superior to the average player’s skill of your rank, it is considered as an unfair advantage, about as unfair as hackers. Only difference is hackers can be unfair in GM too. Smurfs are unfair at everything below GM.
It’s however by Blizz’s very definition, not considered to be “cheating the matchmaker”. That’s what my reply you quoted was in response to.
The whole childish problem here with this entire thread is that you have an unfortunate amount of people who don’t care what Blizz’s definition is, they created their own, and are trying hard to convince themselves and everyone else that their definition is the actual one in place.
6 stack of smurfs? Very sad people lol
The ingame example to report someone for cheating is “engaging in any activity that grants an unfair advantage” OP and myself (I’m sure others, too) consider a 6 stack of smurfs to be an unfair advantage.
It’s fine if you don’t believe that - but let’s not pretend like it doesn’t fall within the definition example given by the ingame system.
Regardless, people will report as they like and Blizzard will take action or not take action. 
Actually the EULA for all Blizzard games state cheating is doing anything which allows you to play the game in a manner other than intended.
I’m pretty sure that cheating the matchmaker by throwing to achieve a low rank and play outside of your normal SR range would, indeed, be considered playing the game in a manner other than intended.
Ranks wouldn’t exist at all if that was supposed to happen.
I report smurfs for gameplay sabotage. By description, it qualifies.
That isn’t about throwing though. Nobody disputes that throwing is cheating.
The person he’s responding to is arguing that creating new accounts is cheating, whether you throw or not. Which it isn’t.
Funny how I still have to point this out, Jeff himself according to his post that is quoted multiple times in this very thread doesn’t apparently agree with your sentiment. Read the part where he says that the ranking system will soon place new players in the system appropriately after they begin. Nowhere did he say “Oh unless it’s a 6 stack, how dare they”
I’m not the one deluding myself into believing a reality that doesn’t exist, that’s on you.
What? I used to see those little blue midgets 3 apples high every Saturday morning. What you mean not real?!?!
I have a newsflash for you but throwers was never the base of the topic here. The OP’s original post says nothing about throwers, it doesn’t even imply throwers, in fact it more closely points to smurfs that created brand new account to play together being that they said the team all had “theme” names".
No kidding throwing to reduce MMR/SR to dunk on scrubs is against the rules. But the people with two brain cells who can actually follow the real flow of the topic based on what’s actually written and not the implied concoctions of the reactionary weirdos in here already knew that and were never arguing that.
Smurfing, by definition, is throwing games to get put into games where you can roll the enemy team. We have the second part of the equation here in this scenario, and I think it’s very likely that there was indeed throwing in placements to get them placed here, which is ergo circumventing the matchmaker and ergo cheating.
I’m not playing what if’s. I’m saying “this seems common and likely, here’s my conclusion.” There are simply more scenarios where this is cheating/smurfing than simple failure of the matchmaker. The matchmaker is very smart and won’t easily put people where they don’t belong.
So it’s all just one big assumption based on minimal evidence. That’s your opinion and that’s fine. There’s just nothing to back it besides one bit of evidence that you even provided a massive counter point to in
tbh smurfing wasnt a huge problem back in the days where this game was actually fun. I mean, the game is full of cheaters especially in higher ranks like Master/GM. The game becomes unfun for them. i totaly understand anyone for buying/making a smurf acc to have fun stomping some “noobs”. You will get better when playing against a smurf, but having 6 of them at the same time is too much. Sometimes i get called a smurf for being good with widow, funny part is that my main got perm banned and i have to use a new acc, litteraly playing on the same elo, even higher as before. So many players just look at the lvls and you are a smurf instantly, even if your main is the same elo. well GGs go next
Where’s the “minimal evidence”? Let’s look at what we have as fact:
Where there’s smoke, I think there’s fire. Call it whatever you want. You shouldn’t need to play the “what if” game to justify your argument. As it stands, it looks like they’re Smurf’s.
Lmao what? If the players circumvent the matchmaker by throwing, the matchmaker will put them lower than they belong. What I was referring to there is your argument that “Well maybe they weren’t playing as well”. My point was that, if they truly were 4.1k and belonged there, there’s no reason for them to end up in plat. Throwing will obviously confuse the matchmaker and put them in the wrong spot.
How is this so hard to understand?
Why are you guys even arguing with that omegalul guy?
He is obviously a troll and a multi and not worth to engage with in any kind of way 
Just report smurfs every single time you see them - no matter if they are on the enemy team or yours - no matter if they win or lose.
Too many people just stopped caring and gave up on this matter, but the more reports are piling up, the more pressure is on Blizzard to finally do something about it.
Doesn’t matter… blizzard doesn’t care about cheaters, the devs don’t care about cheaters. They encourage and support smurfs cheating in the game. That’s why smurfs stick around, because the devs are ok with them ruining everyone’s games to make them feel better about their sad lives.