The annual WWE Survivor Series pay-per-view seeks to pit Raw vs. SmackDown in competition to determine brand superiority. And the only way to do that is to pick the best of the best for each team.

Naturally, both brands are packed with men and women who have rightful spots on their rosters. It's all about selecting the right synergy for these explosive personalities.

While the champions will be busy with their respective matches, let's look at the best possible options left to fill the remaining spots for the traditional elimination matches at this year's Survivor Series on Nov. 21.

Men's Team for Raw

Raw has more options on this list, as the roster boasts an impressive balance of speed, power, youth and experience.

Team captain should go to Bobby Lashley. He's only lost a handful of matches in the past 18 months, one of which happened to be against Goldberg at Crown Jewel. His dominance has been off the charts, and he has three Hurt Business backups for potential interference in MVP, Shelton Benjamin and Cedric Alexander.

Someone else who has outside help is AJ Styles. Omos being at ringside could be a difference-maker to coincide with The Phenomenal One's stellar work inside the squared circle.

You want someone ruthless and on the younger side on the team, and Karrion Kross fits the bill. The 36-year-old has one of the best win-loss records in the company and could play spoiler by running through all of Team SmackDown.

Keith "Bearcat" Lee mixes his immense size with the athleticism of someone like Styles. Just when you think you've gone through a juggernaut like Kross or Lashley, the former NXT champion is right there and has the stamina of someone half his size.

Rounding out the list could be a number of names from Austin Theory (possibly too cocky and could get in the way), Kevin Owens (but he is rumored to be leaving WWE in January when his contract is up, per Fightful Select) and even Edge or Seth Rollins.

However, one person who brings something to the table no others do is Finn Balor, particularly if he's willing to switch into Demon King mode. We saw at Extreme Rules that he effectively has a cheat code and can get a second wind in a heartbeat.

Men's Team for SmackDown

SmackDown would be led by Drew McIntyre. He's large in physique and a two-time WWE champion.

The blue brand needs a big man to offset Kross, Lee and Lashley, which is where Ridge Holland comes in. Shanky doesn't have what it takes, Happy Corbin's too adversarial, Top Dolla and Mace are too green and Sheamus has too many injuries to exploit and rivals McIntyre's authority.

However, Holland has been a force in NXT and done well taking direction from Pete Dunne, so he may follow The Scottish Warrior's orders.

Cesaro is one of the strongest people on the roster. He has a balance of power, speed, technical wrestling skills and the hunger to prove himself while being an experienced grappler who's picked up some tricks along the way. He and McIntyre can keep Holland in check.

Take your pick between Jeff Hardy or Ricochet. Do you prefer the veteran's better track record or how The One and Only's body hasn't taken the same beating? Either of the two provides the agility and high-flying needed to keep the other team on its toes.

Lastly, a team is made even stronger by bonding through positivity. Camaraderie can go a long way in boosting morale and keeping everyone unified. The New Day exemplify this, so the choice is either Kofi Kingston with more accolades to his name or King Xavier Woods coming off the biggest win of his career and the most momentum he's ever had.

Both men have been part of, arguably, the greatest team in WWE history, so you know they'll work well alongside the babyfaces and underline the theme that this group is built on respect.

Women's Team for Raw

Team captain for Raw must be Bianca Belair. With her women's Royal Rumble victory leading into capturing the SmackDown Women's Championship in the main event of WrestleMania 37, she's more than proved herself worthy of the moniker The EST of WWE.

Backing her up should be Rhea Ripley—also a champion from WrestleMania and one of the bigger powerhouses the women's division has to offer. She has even had success recently as half of the Super Brutality tag team in NXT at Survivor Series as well as WarGames. Clearly, she works well in a group if surrounded by the right names.

Doudrop nearly won the Queen's Crown tournament and is one of the largest women in WWE. Taking her down would be a tough task, so she could be a brick wall for the opposition.

Several names are out of commission, such as Alexa Bliss and Nia Jax. Tegan Nox is too injury prone to trust. Dana Brooke has a poor win-loss record, as does Tamina despite her recent tag team title run. Carmella and Zelina Vega couldn't get along with anyone on this team and would cause problems.

That narrows the final spots to Liv Morgan, Nikki A.S.H. and Mia Yim.

Ideally, Yim gets one of those. Few women on the main roster have crossed paths with her yet, which makes her difficult to prepare for. She has a mean streak and a tough attitude that can carry her far.

Then, as much as it will upset Morgan's fans, the edge goes to A.S.H. as she's Ripley's partner and they have synergy together. The Scot has also won Money in the Bank and the Raw Women's Championship this year, while Morgan comes up short in big matches.

Women's Team for SmackDown

Two women in particular are great options to lead Team SmackDown: Sasha Banks and Shayna Baszler.

In the case of The Boss, she's been at the top of the division many times and seen and done it all. But The Queen of Spades obliterated the NXT roster seemingly forever, ran through an Elimination Chamber gauntlet on her own and is on a tear as of late.

Arguably, Banks should lead with Baszler as the anchor of the squad. The Boss in opposition to Belair also allows them to finish their feud once and for all.

Aliyah's lost too much in NXT to be worth the risk. B-Fab has had two matches so is too green. But Xia Li had been destroying people left and right in NXT up until her move to the blue brand in the WWE draft. If she's ready to go and hasn't forgotten the teachings of Tian Sha, she could prove almost unstoppable.

Naomi is too wrapped up in her feud with Sonya Deville to get involved. And an authority figure can tinker with a match, which could be detrimental to the team.

So, two spots are left with Natalya, Toni Storm and Shotzi available.

Natalya makes sense for her experience and momentum from recent success in the women's tag team division. Shotzi's great, but her 55-day tag team title reign is beaten out by Storm, who won the Mae Young Classic and NXT UK Women's Championship.

A Look at the Finished Teams

Men's Team Raw:

1. Bobby Lashley (captain)
2. AJ Styles
3. Finn Balor
4. Karrion Kross
5. Keith "Bearcat" Lee

Men's Team SmackDown:

1. Drew McIntyre (captain)
2. Cesaro
3. Jeff Hardy or Ricochet
4. Kofi Kingston or Xavier Woods
5. Ridge Holland

Women's Team Raw:

1. Bianca Belair (captain)
2. Doudrop
3. Nikki A.S.H.
4. Mia Yim
5. Rhea Ripley

Women's Team SmackDown:

1. Sasha Banks (captain)
2. Natalya
3. Toni Storm
4. Shayna Baszler
5. Xia Li

Anthony Mango is the owner of the wrestling website Smark Out Moment and the host of the podcast show Smack Talk on YouTube, iTunes and Stitcher. You can follow him on Facebook and elsewhere for more.