Evil Geniuses Spring Split was one of fairly reasonable expectations and result. Most people going into the season had EG around the fourth to fifth range. They had a strong roster on paper with some big offseason moves to get IgNar and Impact. And while not to be mean to Deftly, it was pretty public that EG wanted to get Lost from TSM. Unfortunately, with Doublelift retiring, they took him themselves. This left EG in an awkward spot. K1ng had an insanely high buyout, so they just went with their Academy ADC, Deftly. And while Deftly did a pretty solid job all around, pretty solid isn’t what EG are looking for.
Offseason Moves
EG want to be one of the top orgs in the LCS. They want to be a TSM, C9 or TL. An organization that puts together winning rosters yearly. Frankly, they want Worlds. A change needed to be made and that was in the ADC role. Up from Evil Geniuses Prodigies, EG’s Amateur League of Legends team, comes Danny. Danny previously played under the tag Shiro and is known for his raw talent and teamfighting skills. Furthermore, he is 17 years old, but has been playing League of Legends since he was 6. Players like this are one in a million.
Impact:
Impact is still the greatest asset on EG. Despite being removed from TL, he is still performing at the top of LCS, pun intended. His greatest asset to EG has been his ability to play weakside and still be a playmaker. From his pick or ban Renekton to his nutty Gnar Rs, Impact has solo carried some EG games. Furthermore, Impact does not tilt. The TL game from Spring Split shows this. He got camped, died four times in 10 minutes and still came back and made Alphari look like a waste of an import slot. It was the single most impressive performance of the Spring Split.
Impact is a weakside king, but he can play aggressively. His Jax, Mordekaiser and Sylas come to mind. These are all champions he is very comfortable on and with Morde and Sylas being solid picks right now, it’s possible fans will get to see him pull them out. The issue with Impact spamming tank after tank is that it makes EG’s draft predictable. So many times throughout the split enemy Top Laners were not afraid of blind picking cause they knew it would just be a Gnar. This is something EG should try to iron out.
Overall Impact is still a disgustingly good Top Laner.
Svenskeren:
Svenskeren is frankly underperforming. He didn’t have a solid Spring Split in most metrics. He was also just caught in greedy and questionable situations more often than a player of his caliber should. Hopefully, with the Jungle pool opening up, Sven is able to regain his MVP form.
Now despite Sven having some bad games, he also had some good ones. His dragon and baron control has been very good despite his other stats. He also has tried some picks that other Junglers have not such as Mundo. While Udyr will still be the king of the Jungle, some tank picks are back such as Sej and even J4. These are the picks that Sven will succeed on. Hard engage and playmaking champions. And yes, he can still play Udyr.
EG just needs Sven to be more consistent and clean up some of his mistakes.
Jiizuke:
Jiizuke is good. That is a statement that tilts people. A lot of fans do not understand what Jiizuke brings to EG. He brings a wild cast of characters like Neeko and Yone while also being a constant split pushing and lane threat. He draws resources from teams that most Mid Laners do not. Such as when he shoves lane early with a corrupting just to deny the enemy as much CS as possible. Or being in seemingly bad spots drawing 2-3 players to him while EG does something else.
Now, this isn’t to claim that Jiizuke is always doing the right thing. Sometimes he just ints. Lucian dive anyone? But it is simply false to say that Jiizuke brings nothing to the team. He is a top DPM Mid Laner, great CSer, and frankly unpredictable. That is why EG likes him.
Danny and IgNar:
Danny is the future of the LCS. That may be hyperbole to some, but it’s true. Danny is the result of EG doing an amateur team for League of Legends. He is the result of young talent getting the chance to prove themselves. This is the structure that successful regions like China and Korea run on and NA is finally getting a taste. Sure, the LCS has had Niles and Iconic from collegiate, but this isn’t collegiate. Players like Danny are why most LCS orgs are spending the money to scout young players.
Gushing aside, Danny is a disgusting teamfight monster with a taste for blood. He struggled in Proving Grounds in some laning metrics and his DPM was not at the top, but what he did bring was that ability to create plays and go in when needed. This paring is what IgNar needs to succeed as well. He needs someone who willing to go in. Remember Fervor of Battle Leona?
It felt like that wasn’t there in the Spring Split with the exception of some Neeko games. EG should have IgNar on nutty picks that allow him to create plays. This pairing is going to be the most exciting Bot Lane to watch in the Summer Split. It will ride or die most games.
When Do Evil Geniuses Start?
The first game for EG is on Friday, June 4 at 7:00 PM EST versus Dignitas. This is a big opening match as Dig are one win above them in the standings. This would tie EG with Dig and 100T, assuming 100T don’t win their opener. After that, EG play TSM on Saturday and Flyquest on Sunday. The rest of the schedule is as follows:
- Week 1: DIG, TSM, FLY
- Week 2: IMT, TL, 100T
- Week 3: C9, CLG, GGs
- Week 4: TL, TSM, DIG
- Week 5: FLY, CLG, GGs
- Week 6: IMT, 100T, C9
- Week 7: GGs, FLY, DIG
- Week 8: TSM, IMT, CLG
- Week 9: C9, TL, 100T
Expectations:
Fans should expect an even more aggressive and more coin-flippy EG. This isn’t an opinion, this is straight from the horse’s mouth, Head Coach Peter Dun. One of the issues with Spring Split EG is that IgNar, known for aggressive plays, was put with Deftly who wasn’t as aggressive or lane dominant as a player. This led to IgNar being underutilized and unable to do what he does best. The switch to Danny should help out in this regard. Also, it is worth noting that Danny is a Rookie in the LCS. So expect him to make mistakes. There will be growing pains.
But after those pains subside, EG is a fourth-place team with a (+1, -1) possibility. EG should not place under fifth. They have the talent, a decent record and the staff to give them the ability to excel. The real question is how are 100T going to perform? These two teams are about the same in terms of power level. If 100T falls behind though, the fourth place spot is EG’s. In Playoffs though, there is a world where EG can take a series off TL, C9 or TSM. But is it likely? No. Hence, the +1 for third is a bit more of a courtesy than anything else.
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