The LCS may be the most volatile region in the world. Not many teams have looked impressive over the past three weeks of play, and the inconsistency from week to week is astounding. In fact, the only teams that look relatively consistent are the two at the top: Team Liquid and Cloud9. Unfortunately, this can only mean that they don’t have any competition from their peers. How can one expect to improve when they aren’t challenged in the first place? Let’s see who is making moves in our week three power rankings for the LCS.
1. Team Liquid (6-0) [↔️]
2. Cloud9 (4-2) [+2]
3. 100 Thieves (3-3) [+6]
4. FlyQuest (3-3) [-2]
5. Counter Logic Gaming (3-3) [↔️]
6. Echo Fox (3-3) [↔️]
7. Golden Guardians (2-4) [+3]
8. TSM (2-4) [-5]
9. OpTic Gaming (2-4) [-2]
10. Clutch Gaming (2-4) [-2]
Biggest jump: 100 Thieves [+5]
Biggest drop: TSM [-5]
2019 #LCS Spring Split Standings at the end of week three!
1) #TLWIN (6-0)
2) #C9WIN (4-2)
3) #CLGWIN (3-3)
-) #FOXWIN (3-3)
-) #FLYWIN (3-3)
-) #100WIN (3-3)
7) #TSMWIN (2-4)
-) #GGSWIN (2-4)
-) #CGWIN (2-4)
-) #OPTWIN (2-4)— LoL Esports (@lolesports) February 11, 2019
Battling for the Crown: Team Liquid, Cloud9
Honestly, consistency is the name of the game here in the LCS. If you can stay at least a little bit consistent with your performances, you can come out on top. The only two teams that have been able to keep up and stay ahead of the pack have been Team Liquid and Cloud9. Team Liquid is indisputably the best team in the region and for good reason. But with the lack of competition at home, how will this team fare in international play? TL might have some tricks up their sleeves, but will it be enough once they face off against some real challenges at the Mid-Season Invitational and beyond?
On the other side, we have the entertaining and talented Cloud9. They haven’t been perfect through week three, but have looked solid heading into week four. Their macro is finally piecing together, and Yasin “Nisqy” Dinçer looks right at home with his new teammates. Their willingness to innovate and make risky plays would bring them to the Worlds semifinals last year, and it is paying dividends this year as well. They may be the only other team that could really challenge Liquid. Out of the mishmash of teams brawling in the middle of our power rankings, Cloud9 and Team Liquid rise above.
Possible LCS Challengers: 100 Thieves
It gets so blurry after the top two teams in the LCS, but at least 100 Thieves has shown some good improvement. For example, Kim “Ssumday” Chan-ho played really well over the span of the last three games. 100 Thieves have also won their last three games. Coincidence? Bae “Bang” Jun-sik has also been playing extremely well in the span too. We may finally see the true potential of this team, once they get their synergy together. Even though they do have some trouble in the later stages of the game, giving Bang and Ssumday champions they can actually do something with is a good start. If they can take down FlyQuest and Echo Fox in week four, they may solidify themselves as a top-three team in the standings and our power rankings.
The LCS Melting Pot: FlyQuest, Counter Logic Gaming, Echo Fox, Golden Guardians
Welcome to the middle of the LCS pack, where all the teams suck and the wins don’t matter! I’m obviously kidding, but there’s always a grain of truth in every joke. It is so hard to place the rest of the teams in the region in our power rankings, simply because of how inconsistent they are on a weekly basis. Each of these teams could beat each other on any given day. FlyQuest was looking great the two weeks before, but they lost against Echo Fox and Liquid this week. I guess losing to the best team in the region is acceptable, but losing to Echo Fox shouldn’t be.
Meanwhile, Counter Logic Gaming and Echo Fox both look average at best after week three. Both teams have had flashes of good play, but it has been mostly uneventful so far. CLG has to ramp up their play for the upcoming weeks and play at a more urgent pace. Too many of their games have been decided by a final decisive team fight late in the match. As for Echo Fox, ending with a 3-3 record on top of a relatively weak schedule isn’t a good sign. Their average style of play won’t cut it when they face teams like Cloud9, Team Liquid, and 100 Thieves. In fact, they’ll be facing all three in the next two weeks.
When it comes to the Golden Guardians, we can’t say that they’ve found their footing in the league just yet. They’ve only had one good week in the LCS, and they’re going up against Team Liquid and CLG next. They still have a lot to show, before we even begin to say they’ve improved. They still make a lot of mistakes, and their winning strategies simply won’t work against better teams. However, that’s the funny part. Besides Cloud9 and Team Liquid, are there any actual “good” teams right now?
Starving for Success: TSM, OpTic Gaming, Clutch Gaming
TSM dropped five spots in our power rankings because they lost against the Golden Guardians, who previously looked like the worst team in the league. They were also handled by Cloud9 in a 45-minute slugfest, where everyone not named Søren “Bjergsen” Bjerg made multiple mistakes. There is a silver lining for the squad, as they’ve looked more aggressive than ever before. The only problem is that they haven’t locked down their coordination together, so their aggression has usually led to their downfall. Once they find more synergy as a squad, they will probably climb back up the ladder again.
In the case of OpTic Gaming, the Green Wall just hasn’t been able to find a good rhythm yet with their roster. They’ve tried out a few variants of their lineup, and their supposed “starting” roster played this past week. Unfortunately, they got absolutely dominated by Liquid and Golden Guardians. Until they figure out who will make up their true starting five, the constant changing of the guard will take a toll on their players and the way they play.
Clutch Gaming is now suffering a four-game losing streak and is spiraling to the bottom of the power rankings once again. This team simply has way too many problems to jump into the mishmash of teams in the middle. They are probably going to be struggling for a majority of this Spring Split unless they make a drastic change in their mindset or their roster.
What are your thoughts on our Week Three LCS Power Rankings? Let us know what you think in the comments below! If you want more LCS coverage, check us out here!
Published: Feb 14, 2019 04:46 pm