Yea, but it doesn’t have to be a one or the other situation.
Look at wsg for example.
Pugs do well against pugs. (As rarely as this happens.) Faction isn’t an issue. The games are usually quite competitive.
Why?
People are participating and there isn’t an actual advantage that either side enjoys.
AV in it’s current form is a complete disaster. I may have queued for two games in the past month. It just isn’t fun to lose every single game you play, and there is literally nothing you can do to improve your situation.
The current playstyle surrounding the honor system is toxic and broken.