(+150) Victory Five v ThunderTalk Gaming (-190)

(+250) LGD Esports v TOP Esports (-350)

(-185) kt Rolster v DragonX (+145)

(-500) Damwon Gaming KIA v Hanwha Life Eports (+325)

This is a fun slate with some intriguing story lines to dig into. We get to see some of the most aggressive teams in TES, DWG, and kt Rolster. We get to see the brilliance of Kramer, ShowMaker, and Chovy as well as lower percentage players such as Xiaopeng, Noah, and Dove. All eyes are on these two major regions with teams playing that definitely can make a push to the World Championships. So let’s dive in! 

Game #1 Victory Five v ThunderTalk Gaming

Cann’s Pick: ThunderTalk Gaming

Game #2:  LGD Esports v TOP Esports

Cann’s Pick: TOP Esports

Game #3: kt Rolster v DragonX

Cann’s Pick: kt Rolster

Game #4: Damwon Gaming KIA v Hanwha Life Eports

Cann’s Pick: Damwon Gaming KIA

Fantasy Value Breakdown

Captain

Favorite: Knight (TES: $11,700) Knight is about everything you would want out of a captain role. He doesn’t normally die (9 deaths in 7 games) with 29 kills and 23 assists. He has the highest KDA (6.9) and team kill share percentage (65%) on TES and they are playing a pretty heavy underdog tomorrow in LGD. While Xiye (LGD mid laner) has decent kill (43) and assist (73) numbers, he also dies frequently (28) and that will be an area that TES will look to exploit on Friday. 

Value Pick: Noah (KT: $10, 800)

Top Lane

Favorite: Khan (DWG: $6,600) There really aren’t too many top laners on this slate that make me say “Wow, gotta pick him up” In reality, most of these teams technically have multiple top laners so don’t break the bank here. I think the skill gap between DWG and HLE makes this pick the best selection for your cash. HLE look to be in complete disarray and rely entirely too much on Chovy winning them a late game team fight. Even if DWG don’t put Khan on an aggressive champion, he should be able to capitalize on the disorganization of HLE in the late game. 

Value Pick: Garvey (LGD: $5,400) 

Jungle

Favorite: Karsa (TES:$7,200) Some of the success of Knight this split has come from the focus on Karsa to get him ahead early in the game. Shad0w (LGD) has been on a mission to redefine himself, I think the gap in laners will be enough to get Karsa ahead early. Karsa isn’t super kill focused (13 in 7 games) but does rack up assist points (47) and has a 4.0 KDA. Safe pick up here but not going to be productive enough for your captain spot. 

Value Pick: Blank (KT: $6,400) 

Mid Lane

Favorite: Dove (KT: $7,200) Much like the Karsa pick, I love how safe this pick should be on Friday. He has 37 kills and 52 assists through their first 11 games. His opponent (DRX’s SOLKA) ranks near the bottom of the table in both kills (11) and assists (26). While I definately think this is going to be the closest game on the slate and could go all three games, the mid lane should always be a place where KT have an edge. 

Value Pick: Uniboy (V5: $6,400)

ADC

Favorite: Ghost (DWG: $7,600) Ghost gets forgotten on this roster a lot but he does a great job always picking up respectable points. DWG sarted slow but have been making steps to get back into form (this has included a few odd position changes) but it appears that the organization is happy with their bot lane. Ghost currently has a team kill participation rate of 74% and takes little attention by the jungler to get ahead. Look for Ghost to start relatively quiet and pick up a ton of kills and assists in the late game. 

Value Pick: SamD (TT: $7,400) 

Support

Favorite: BeryL (DWG: $5,400) The real difference between BeryL and Ghost is when they come online in their aggression. I really only see Ghost as a late game insurance policy but BeryL loves to be aggressive early. I would imagine DWG would like to keep him around Ghost in the very early game, look for him to roam early and find opportunities around the map. 

Value Pick: Becca ($4,600)

Team

Favorite: Thunder Talk Gaming ($5,200) This will be a pretty low ownership team I think. Most will be drawn to the TES/DWG picks because of their name but there is some value in this pick. They play V5 who have been a disaster all of this year, TT has had moments in different matches where they put together some really good play. I love their Patch/Xiaopeng combo and I am not scared by the league’s lowest killing team (V5).

Value Pick: DRX ($4,800) 

Cann’s Example Lineup

DraftKings Classic 

$50,000 Salary Cap

Captain (x1.5): Knight ($11,700)

Alternate: SamD ($11,100)

Top: invincible ($5,800)

Jungle: Karsa ($7,200)

Alternate: Blank ($6,400)
Mid: Chovy ($7,000)

ADC: Ghost ($7,600)

Alternate: Kramer ($6,800)

Support: BeryL ($5,400)

Team: Thunder Talk Gaming ($5,200)