• (+145) LNG Esports v EDward Gaming (-185)
  • (-325) FunPlus Phoenix v Team WE (+230)

The LPL enters one of its final rounds tomorrow, with LNG Esports facing off against EDward Gaming in the loser’s bracket, whereas the first Grand Final representative will be decided in FunPlus Phoenix versus Team WE in the winner’s semifinals.

Captain

Viper ($11,100)

The EDG ADC has made his mark in the LPL this year. He’s one of the strongest ADCs across the board, despite getting dropped narrowly by Team WE in QuarterFinals. Viper’s match-up against Light is solid, and he has the support advantage with Meiko. If you want to shell out the big bucks, pick up the MVP Doinb against Shanks in the middle lane.

Alternatives to consider: Doinb ($11,700)

Top Lane

Flandre ($6,400)

While EDG’s top laner was unimpressive against a strong force like Breathe, he can still handedly deal with a lower tier top laner like Ale- Flandre is the bar for international top laners in the LPL. He’s right about at the level, top 3, but not as great as Breathe or Nuguri. Light is a decent top laner, but he can’t compare against a player like Flandre- it’s likely his run ends here.

Alternatives to consider: Nuguri ($6,800)

Jungle

Jiejie ($6,600)

This is by far the biggest sacrifice on Wednesday. Jiejie looked weak against Beishang, and his opponent Tarzan is an even more difficult opponent. The massive advantage Jiejie has is much stronger laners relative to their LNG counterparts, whereas WE could match EDG in lane, and bring their aggression to EDG in the jungle. Tian is the safer option, but dramatically more expensive relative to Jiejie.

Alternatives to consider: Tian ($7,200)

Mid Lane

Doinb ($7,800)

Doinb is the highest value pick on Wednesday, he’s the best overall mid laner in the LPL and targets Shanks, one of the weaker players on Team WE. Since Knight got defeated, the current mid laners have been lackluster, but Scout is a reasonable enough secondary option for the role- but the role is weak enough to skip over an option as captain.

Alternatives to consider: Scout ($7,600)

ADC

Lwx ($7,600)

Alongside Viper, Lwx is a superstar in his role, and has improved a lot across his time in the league- formerly considered a liability in 2020, he’s bounced back massively in 2021 and has contended with Viper for #1 in his role. His opponent in Elk is similarly strong, but he’s certainly one of the “have-nots” compared to Lwx and Viper.

Alternatives to consider: Viper ($7,400)

Support

Meiko ($5,200)

Support is a unique choice, since every single support is reasonably solid: Iwandy, Missing, Meiko, and Crisp. The only issue is, is support is disproportionate determined by their team, as far as performance is concerned. Crisp and Meiko are the most likely to win, and therefore rack up points: however, picking a sac pick isn’t that bad, since each support is actually quite solid.

Alternatives to consider: Crisp ($5,600)

Team

FunPlus Phoenix ($5,200)

FPX is a cut above all of the other LPL teams, without a doubt. Coming in as the #1 team, and still being in the winners bracket- whilst their main rivals in RNG and EDG have fallen into the losers bracket- or out of play-offs entirely. FPX is here to stay, and this pick leaves you with a shiny $100- there’s nothing you can do with the extra $200 EDG gives you.

Alternatives to consider: EDward Gaming ($5,000)

Stacks

Doinb & Lwx

The carries of FPX are ideal choices against their WE counterparts. WE’s Shanks has had poor showings in the past, and while he’s improved, he’s still the weakest player on the squad. Doinb is also a player that’s adept at translating his advantages across the map, hence, Lwx joining up with him is ideal.

Viper & Flandre

The sides of EDG are solid choices against LNG. Tarzan is by far their best player, but he’s often held back by his teammates’ shortcomings. This is likely the angle EDG will use to attack LNG, by harnessing their stronger side lanes against LNG in order to crack Tarzan.

Tian & Doinb

Tian is by far the best jungler to choose on Wednesday- he has a relatively solid match-up against Beishang, and his laners are there to support him, especially his mid laner Doinb against Shanks, as we’ve discussed earlier. Doinb is here to make sure Tian gets the better of Beishang.

Top Picks: Viper, Tian, Doinb

Viper is an LCK legend who has made his year in China count, he’s a full fledged star. Tian and Doinb are two world champions regaining their footing, and looking fantastic as a result.

Top Value: Flandre, Jiejie, Viper

Jiejie is the weakest player on his squad, and this hypothetical fantasy squad too, but at $600 dollars cheaper relative to Tian, that’s a lot of money that can be used for good. Flandre likewise is a strong top laner, albeit slightly inconsistent, but he should find the better of Light. Viper needs no introduction- fantastic player.