Syntax Style
Favoring CTEs or a specific syntax style doesn’t make your skills any less legit.
Not every critic is worth listening to.
While poor choices can occur in constructing T-SQL, style is typically not one of them unless it impacts performance, readability, or maintainability.
I’m sure someone can share some unreadable code, but that’s not what I’m referring to.
I think CTEs are fantastic, but you are welcome to disagree.