League of Legends Championship Series

February 20th, 2022

(-375) Evil Geniuses v Immortals (+260)

(+220) FlyQuest v 100 Thieves (-300)

(+280) Team Solomid v Cloud9 (-415)

(+150) Golden Guardians v Dignitas (-200)

(+600) Counter Logic Gaming v Team Liquid (-1200)

Saturday was a wild ride to say the least in the LCS. Before matches even began, Cloud9 shocked the world by firing their head coach LS. With four hours until game time, C9 decided to let LS go and we saw one of the worst losses by Cloud9 in their team’s history. The entirety of the C9 lineup was crafted by LS and he was widely considered the glue for the team. Picking his team, even into the just as dysfunctional TSM, seems like a huge risk. In more positive news, the return of CoreJJ and the completion of Team Liquid seems to have produced what could be the most skilled and polished team the LCS has ever produced. Many critics questioned whether or not the lineup could gel quickly but it was shown quickly that TL is legit. So many great games and room for a few underdogs in big spots here, let’s dive in!

Game #1: Evil Geniuses v Immortals

Cann’s Pick: Evil Geniuses

Game #2: FlyQuest v 100 Thieves

Cann’s Pick: 100 Thieves

Game #3: Team Solomid v Cloud9 

Cann’s Pick: Team Solomid

Game #4: Golden Guardians v Dignitas 

Cann’s Pick: Golden Guardians

Game #5 : Counter Logic Gaming v Team Liquid

Cann’s Pick: Team Liquid

Fantasy Value Breakdown

Captain

Favorite: Hans sama (TL: $11,700) The cost of these picks from the TL squad is borderline disrespectful. You can see in my example lineup below that I can get all three of the main carries from TL and CoreJJ while limiting too many risky picks to fill the spaces. Hans sama currently has an average 53.1 FPPG (a touch overblown because Lock In best of fives are figured in there) but he still had 31 points in their rout of Evil Geniuses on Saturday. The most impressive part of that stat line? EG were heavily committed to killing Hans in teamfights and more often than not, they could jump on him early in the fight. Love this pick against CLG who lacks some of the individual playmakers that EG has. 

Value Pick: jojopyun (EG: $10,800) 

Top 

Favorite: Bwipo (TL: $7,000) Last series was Bwipo’s lowest fantasy performance with 1 kill, 4 assists, and 0 deaths. Why did he have lower production? He got so far ahead in the early game, EG could not match him in the side lane so they tried to avoid him. CLG can lack that in game critical thinking and the former TL top laner, Jenkins, is going to look to fight him. This could be a tank Bwipo game but you will trade the kill potential for more of a team fight presence and Bwipo will trade kills for more assists. Net win either way for your lineup. 

Value Pick: Licorice (GG: $5,600)

Jungle

Favorite: Closer (100: $7,200) There could be a case made for Closer being a candidate for early leader in the MVP race for the LCS. In his last 10 series, Closer is averaging over 30 FPPG, 4+ kills, and nearly 8 assists per game. 100 Thieves are facing another “first place” team in FlyQuest. Most feel FQ are somewhat fraudulent because they have avoided playing most of the top teams so far. They also rely on a more gimmicky for of playing where they funnel a ton of resources to their bottom lane. It takes a jungler with smart pathing to beat this strategy and that is exactly what 100 Thieves has in Closer. 

Value Pick: Inspired (EG: $7,000)

Mid

Favorite: Bjergsen (TL: $7,600) Teams just cannot find answer for the TL mid laner. Bjergsen has his first serious carry performance into EG and the flashy rookie jojopyun on Saturday. On Veigar (a very off meta pick that most regard isn’t very strong) Bjergsen picked up 8 kills and 2 assists while avoiding dying the entire game. Bjerg’s KDA is second highest in the league (12.3) and Palafox, while aggressive in his own right, is very prone to dying to try and get kills. The 9 death differential (Bjerg- 4 and Palafox- 15) should tell you the entire story. 

Value Pick: Keaiduo (TSM: $6,000) 

ADC

Favorite: Danny (EG: $7,600) Many will be very quick to jump off the EG bandwagon after their loss to TL and their losses to C9 and 100 Thieves in previous weeks. Resist that urge and continue to pick EG players. They are really young and will struggle at times in the best of 1 style that the LCS uses. They will also be just as likely to hit massive numbers and Danny is a great example of that. He has a high ceiling and it is why he has a 2 kill to 1 death ratio through 5 games. As EG settles into the weaker portion of their schedule, Danny’s numbers will jump. 

Value Pick: FBI (100: $7,400) 

Support

Favorite: CoreJJ (TL: $5,800) In his return to the LCS, CoreJJ dropped a 4.0 KDA and 24 fantasy points against one of the LCS’ best teams. Like I noted in the TL breakdowns above, you cannot look at the LCS landscape and honestly say that any team, barring a TL meltdown, is anywhere near the 

Value Pick: huhi (100: $5,600)

Team

Favorite: Evil Geniuses ($5,200) Very cheap price for a really good team. People have jumped off the ship but remember that they did make it to the Lock In Finals and made a decent run in the 2021 Summer Playoffs. The core of the EG coaching staff may be top 3 in the league and they will have moments where they need to grow. Over the course of the season, they will put up big numbers. 

Value Pick: 100 Thieves ($5,000) 

Cann’s Example Lineup

DraftKings Classic 

$50,000 Salary Cap

Captain (x1.5): Hans sama (TL: $11,700)

Alternate: Closer (100: $10,800)

Top: Bwipo (TL: $7,000)

Alternate:  Ssumday (100: $6,400)

Jungle: Pridestalker (GG: $6,400)

Mid: Bjergsen (TL: $7,600)

Alternate: Keaiduo (TSM: $6,000)

ADC: Lost (GG: $6,800)

Support: CoreJJ (TL: $5,800)

Team: Golden Guardians ($4,600)