As we enter the halfway point of the Fantasy LCS season, some moves should be a given (like starting anyone involved with Echo Fox). Other decisions can get a little more complicated, and there are lots of factors to consider. Here are just a couple tips on who to start, sit or snag for later to help you improve your roster.
Start:
Tristan “PowerOfEvil” Schrage – Mid Lane for Optic Gaming.
Opponents this week: Golden Guardians (1-7) and FlyQuest (3-5)
If you’re still on the fence about PowerOfEvil, this is the week to start him. He has performed consistently despite Optics poor performance. His lowest weekly score (25.57) came in Week 3 where they played both first place teams, Echo Fox and Cloud9. In Week 5, Optic will be facing two teams on the other end of the table. FlyQuest sits just above Optic at 3-5, and their new Mid Laner Song “Fly” Yong-jun has only played one week. While he managed several assists, adjusting to a new starter always takes time, and Fly only earned one kill through two games. His other opponent, Hai “Hai” Du Lam, leads the LCS Mid Laners with 24 deaths and has only 12 kills to his name. He and the rest of the Golden Guardians (1-7) should be easy pickings for PowerOfEvil.
Kim “Ruin” Hyeong-min – Top Lane for Giants Gaming
Opponents this week: Splyce (4-4) and Unicorns of Love (1-7)
While he has been having a fairly average Fantasy showing so far this year, Ruin is poised to post some pretty high numbers this week. First he will face off against Unicorns of Love Top Laner Matti “WhiteKnight” Sormunen who has 7 kills and 16 deaths so far this season. WhiteKnight is unlikely to get much help, as his entire team is struggling and currently in last place. Ruin’s second matchup this week looks even more promising, as Giants take on Splyce. His opponent in the top lane, Andrei “Odoamne” Pascu, has recorded only 9 kills so far this season while boasting an LCS-high 30 deaths. Look for Ruin to do everything he can to ensure Odoamne keeps that honor.
Fabian “Febiven” Diepstraten – Mid Lane for Clutch Gaming
Opponents this week: FlyQuest (3-5), Team SoloMid (4-4)
Not only has Febiven been a big name in the LCS for years now, but he has been putting up big numbers each week. His 33 kills and 8 deaths have earned him an average of over 18 points per game. Somehow, he is still being started in less than 44% of fantasy leagues. If there was ever a week to change that, it’s this one as he goes up against FlyQuest and TSM. While facing TSM’s Mid Laner, Søren “Bjergsen” Bjerg, isn’t always an easy task, the fact that their Top, Kevin “Hauntzer” Yarnell, and Jungler, Michael “MikeYeung” Yeung, each have 22 deaths so far this season should more than make up for it.
Sit:
Jung “Impact” Eon-yeong – Top Lane for Team Liquid
Opponents this week: Counter Logic Gaming (3-5) and Golden Guardians (1-7)
While he is facing fairly easy opponents this week, unfortunately that doesn’t always translate to fantasy points. Eugene “Pobelter” Park and Yiliang “Peter” “Doublelift” Peng are the clear caries on the team, and Impact’s main role is to help them.
With 11 kills and 12 deaths, his 11.91 points per game puts him at 14th in the LCS. Despite this, he is still starting in 61% of leagues – third only behind Heo “Huni” Seung-hoon and Hauntzer.
Petter “Hjarnan” Freyschuss – ADC for G2 Esports
Opponents this week: Vitality (7-1) and Misfits (4-4)
Also starting in 61% of leagues is Hjarnan. While he has had some high scoring weeks, he has also had some fairly low ones, and this week looks tough. He starts the week facing Amadeu “Minitroupax” Carvalho who is dominating this season with 25 kills, 5 deaths, and 25 assists. Also a danger on Vitality is the explosive Daniele “Jiizuke” di Mauro, with an impressive 31 kills. After this, Hjarnan will have to face Steven “Hans sama” Liv. Although his best score came when he crushed Misfits Week 1, a repeat of that result is fairly unlikely. Since they last faced off, Hans Sama has found his footing, racking up 31 kills and only 10 deaths, while Hjarnan has struggled.
Zaqueri “aphromoo” Black – Support for 100 Thieves
Opponents this week: Echo Fox (7-1) and Counter Logic Gaming (3-5)
Though an experienced playmaker and shot caller, Aphromoo’s Fantasy scores have been unfortunately low so far this year as he finds his footing with a new team. While many people still believe he will return to the top tier (he is still owned in over 60% of leagues) it is unlikely that this will be his week. Facing the nearly unstoppable Echo Fox, as well as his former teammates at CLG who are surely looking for revenge after Week 1, it may be a little bit longer before we see big points from Aphromoo.
Snag:
Jin “Blanc” Seong-min – Mid Lane for Roccat
Although this may be an uncertain week, as he is facing top-tier Erlend “Nukeduck” Våtevik Holm and last place Marc “Caedrel” Robert Lamont, the future looks bright. Next week, Blanc is going against the 1-7 Unicorns of Love with a struggling Fabian “Exileh” Schubert in the Mid Lane. Additionally, he will be facing Luka “Perkz” Perković, who is playing well but has the 2nd most deaths for a Mid Laner in the EU LCS with 19. Blanc is currently only owned in 21.3% of leagues.
Milo “Pride” Wehnes – Jungle for FC Shalke 04
Only starting in 10.6% of leagues, Pride has the 5th best points average for a Jungler in the LCS. He put up 33 points against Giants in Week 3, and has had two games with 10+ assists. As FC Shalke 04 continues to look strong, he will be a solid Jungle pick in the coming weeks.
Noh “Arrow” Dong-hyeon – ADC for Optic Gaming
Owned in less than ⅓ of leagues, Arrow has been a consistent performer, never posting less than 24 points in a week all season. The next two weeks will be his time to shine as he faces Fly Quest (3-5), TSM (4-4) and the Golden Guardians (1-7) twice.
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Featured image courtesy of LoL Esports