LPL + LCK Wednesday

  • (-135) Hanwha Life Esports v Afreeca Freecs (+105)
  • (-2000) JD Gaming v Victory 5 (+900)
  • (-1200) Damwon KIA v Freddit BRION (+650)
  • (-155) FunPlus Phoenix v Team WE (+120)

Wednesday’s LPL features a close match-up that’s not worth betting on between two top tier powerhouses: FunPlus Phoenix and Team WE. JDG is likely to obliterate the bottom tier V5, Damwon KIA likewise with Freddit BRION after the former made some creative roster adjustments, and I expect HLE to rebound against the Afreeca Freecs.

 

Captain

Canyon ($10,500)

A secret hack on Wednesday; Canyon is currently playing as a mid laner for Damwon KIA as ADC Ghost has been benched in favor of swapping ShowMaker to ADC, Canyon to middle lane, and Malrang to jungle. This new roster is currently 4-0, smashing both Afreeca Freecs and DRX; not particularly high tier opponents, but truthfully BRION isn’t either. Canyon as captain grants you the unique opportunity to land a middle laner on a strong team for super cheap without needing to compromise on anything. For a different choice, I’d pick up Chovy for the same reasons as last week; his opponents are weak, and he is significantly better than his opponent, alongside being the primary win condition for HLE.

Alternatives to consider: Chovy ($10,500)

Top Lane

Khan ($6,800)

BRION picked up a singular game win over HLE, in spite of their extremely weak top laner. Throughout his 49 games in 2021, Hoya has only been positive in LCS in 5 of them, and none of them during this split. Furthermore, Khan is one of the stronger top laners in the LCK, so he won’t get an easy ride like against DuDu. Your other option is Zoom, but he comes at a $200 upgrade; if you have nothing else to upgrade, it’s a good idea to grab him over Khan, but no shame in taking either.

Alternatives to consider: Zoom ($7,000)

Jungle

Malrang ($7,200)

Despite being an underachiever for most of his career, Malrang always excelled at one thing, and it’s actually exactly what Damwon needs: early game control. Across his tenure on Jin Air, they were a team that was aggravating to watch due to their tendency to get sharp leads in the early game but be unable to translate them. However, alongside the veterans on Damwon KIA, these leads are utilized properly and Malrang is a welcomed mix-up to the squad. His opponent in UmTi is unremarkable at the kindest, and bad at the worst. You could grab Kanavi, but I expect Malrang to disintegrate UmTi in the jungle, whereas Kanavi is more free to perform as he wishes, Malrang needs to keep his form up to keep challenging for his spot on the starting roster.

Alternatives to consider: Kanavi ($7,600)

Mid Lane

Chovy ($7,000)

Chovy as middle lane grants you a cheap match-up with a great mid laner; Yagao is really expensive, despite having the best match-up of the day. On the other hand, Chovy is capable of playing for teamfights while his team grants him resources and space to scale. Chovy is a fantastic option for main team middle lane; his team is too unstable for a captain spot, but he always has the potential to show up big. If you’re looking for a different 

Alternatives to consider: ShowMaker ($7,400)

ADC

Loken ($8,000)

Loken is not a good ADC, but Kepler is one of the worst in the leagues. Furthermore, in a disappointing twist of fate, you have only 7 ADCs to choose from: Loken, Kepler, LWX, Elk, Leo, Deft, and Hena. Loken stands out as the only “good” option that isn’t playing Russian Roulette between Elk and LWX. He does his job and will absolutely not be a liability against Kepler: he’ll perform exceptionally well. For a different option, I guess you could take Deft, but I would much rather sac on a different pick and grab Loken.

Alternatives to consider: Deft ($7,200)

Support

Vsta ($5,200)

While Vsta isn’t a great support, I can tell that he tries his best every game he plays. Deft looks like he’s checked out occasionally, and I unironically think that there are certainly games where Vsta is the second best player on HLE behind Chovy. That being said, at his best, he’s just middle tier; Lehends looks like the same kind of player Deft is, soaking in the cash and just chilling in the meantime. I think HLE is the overall better team relative to AFS depending on which flavor of YoHan (or Arthur- personally my preferred jungler) shows up. If you have the extra cash, Beryl may be worth it; but I don’t think a $400 upcharge is enticing for a role like support.

Alternatives to consider: Beryl ($5,600)

Team

Hanwha Life Esports ($5,000)

AFS bad. Fly is unremarkable, their bottom lane can be good, Leo has shown promise and Lehends can be alright, Kiin doesn’t look as special as he has in years past, and Dread is flippy, but is a necessity for AFS to win games. It’s a miracle AFS are relatively high in standings, until you see the teams they’ve beat: Brion, DRX, and barely scraped by against KT. I think it’s a matter of time before HLE bounces back into the 4th or so team in Korea, whereas AFS’ fate is likely around 6th or 7th. For a secondary choice, pick up the top dog in DK, but they’re an expensive option.

Alternatives to consider: Damwon KIA ($5,600)

Stacks

Chovy & Hanwha Life Esports

This is a half-joke, but I am serious when I say you should consider this: Hanwha will likely beat FB, and it’s hard to say who will actually carry beyond Chovy, who is the star of the team. He’s a slower, methodical player that should be capable of out laning and out teamfighting Lava; who isn’t a bad player, but doesn’t have the power Chovy has. I have HLE winning, and Chovy is a good bet for a player to dip in order to get some of the points out of the team.

Loken & Zoom

Two JDG players worth the cash: your AD options are limited, and Zoom is only a little extra relative to Khan, and his match-up is just as easy, if not easier. JDG is a solid team, especially with their strong top side. Zoom is one to look out for going later into the season.

Canyon & Malrang

Double jungle? Kind of. The mid jungle (as weird as it sounds) for DK is a solid choice into FB, whos power comes from their mid laner. Canyon is unpredictable for enemy mids to face, so I expect Lava to get uppercut into the atmosphere. Malrang’s early game, aggressive style is fun to watch and should crush UmTi too.

Top Picks: Canyon, Loken, Chovy

Loken is here due to the lack of available options elsewhere; ShowMaker takes up a mid lane slot despite starting as ADC. Chovy gets a large deal of resources from his team and utilizes them accordingly, and Canyon is a mid laner for the price of a jungler, which is something to be very happy about.

Top Value: Chovy, Vsta, Canyon

Familiar faces? Same story for Chovy and Canyon; being on an undervalued team for the former is pretty fantastic, especially in regards to how it limits the ways they can conceivably play the game: predictability is great for DFS. Vsta is similar, he’s actually a pretty decent support, but with an ADC that doesn’t look like he cares much and a blackhole in the top lane. Not a bad choice for a cheap pick.