This weekend marks the final weekend of the playoffs, the LCS Spring finals 2022. Three teams remain in competition for the championship: Team Liquid, Evil Geniuses and 100 Thieves. Here are three storylines to catch anyone up on what is going on in the LCS Spring finals.
This is where we find out who is truly BUILT DIFFERENT and will secure their spot at MSI! @loltyler1#EGWIN | #TLWIN | #100WIN
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4/23 & 4/24 at 12:30PM PT / 2:30PM CT pic.twitter.com/ckfD5aF7A8— LCS (@LCSOfficial) April 18, 2022
LCS Spring finals 2022 main storylines
Team Liquid – First place or nothing
Every year, it seems like this is the story of Team Liquid. The long time North American organization has always spent its off-seasons looking for the best collection of talent to compete for the top spot in the LCS. Despite Team Liquid’s strength in the minds of many fans, they have missed the championship mark since 2019 Summer playoffs.
Team Liquid are by far the most talented team in the league in terms of name recognition. With Jo “CoreJJ” Yong-in getting his green card, the team famous for importing the best players could go wild this offseason, bringing in big names from Europe the likes of Gabriël “Bwipo” Rau and Steven “Hans sama” Liv. However, with any new team, Team Liquid needs time to gel, and their loss against 100 Thieves in the upper finals proved that a team with less talent and better continuity can beat this team. Team Liquid’s victories have been stomps. They get out to an early lead due to the sheer laning prowess on the team, but the moment the mid and late game come along, a more coordinated team is able to beat them out. The more time Team Liquid can have, the more dominant they will be.
100 Thieves – They aren’t a fluke.
When 100 Thieves started off the season 5-5, there were many fans and analysts who wondered if their last championship was merely a flash in the pan. However, 100 Thieves began to make changes in the middle of the season, realizing 5-5 was not where they wanted to be.
“After the Dignitas loss in the first round-robin, that was where we went back to the lab brought all the players in and set new agreements about what we needed the second part of the season to be about,” said Christopher “Papasmithy” Smith, the general manager of 100 Thieves. “We have super, super high expectations of these guys and faith in them to make the right choices. They did do that the whole time. We, you know, sanded down some edges and kind of put them on the right track.”
Since the rocky start, 100 Thieves started to look back on form. By the time playoffs rolled around, they had regained their form from last year’s playoffs. They swiftly dismantled Cloud9, and beat Team Liquid in a reverse sweep to secure their spot in the finals. 100 Thieves are out to prove that they are worthy of raising two banners in the LCS stadium, and the events of this weekend will determine their narrative.
Evil Geniuses – New kids on the block, out to prove themselves
The young guns are the dark horse of the LCS finals this time, with three promising young players in Kacper “Inspired” Słoma, Kyle “Danny” Sakamaki and Joseph “Jojopyun” Pyun. While Evil Geniuses are regarded as the weakest team coming into these finals, their previous outings against the likes of Team Liquid show that they have something in the tank.
The LCS finals 2022 will be a preview of what this team can do in the future if they stick together. Whether they win or lose, the experience of playing against a large crow against experienced opponents will do wonders for this young team. The finals are always a win-win for Evil Geniuses, and whatever they will learn can be translated further into the summer split.
Published: Apr 21, 2022 05:35 pm