The top five teams of the LCS are starting to separate themselves from the pack with the rest fighting for the last three playoff spots. Week 4 showed that some teams made the necessary adaptions after the first round-robin while others struggled mightily. More changes are coming for some of these teams in an attempt to figure out their roster. Will they help? Time is certainly not on their side and neither are these rankings. Before Week 5 beings, here is a look at where each LCS team stacks up.
[Related: LCS 2021 Summer Split Week 4 Power Rankings]
10. FlyQuest (Even)
Changes are coming for FlyQuest as they continue to falter. In their last game of the weekend against Golden Guardians, FLY were almost able to pull out a win. Tomo and Kumo in particular played extremely well. While they ultimately lost to Ablazeolive, the Academy players clearly had an impact. With more practice time FLY could start to find success again. If they don’t, then their playoff chances start to look very slim.
9. Dignitas (Even)
It was another rough weekend for DIG as they announced that Dardoch was officially released from the team. Luckily they were able to take down the only team worse than them, FlyQuest. Without that win, they would be looking at the cellar for themselves. It is really hard to not to look at DIG’s management and wonder why they made the change they did and how it ultimately affected the roster as a whole. Luckily Neo and aphromoo are still one of the best bot lanes in the LCS. Otherwise, DIG would be miserable at every level.
8. Golden Guardians (Even)
The climb for Golden Guardians is slow and they almost took a detrimental step back against FlyQuest. Luckily Ablazeolive is pushing hard to be rookie of the year with how well his summer has gone. That said, they are starting to find solid pieces for their future. Chime has also been playing well and proving that he deserves an LCS spot. Playoffs are now within reach for GG and there is no doubt they are playing with that goal in mind.
7. CLG (Down 1)
It looks like the all-dive strategy really was only there for a week. There are tweaks that will need to be made if they are going to attempt at continuing the strategy as it can work for this veteran squad. Whether or not they will be able to figure it out is the question. Their playoff lives are on the line and if CLG do not step it up fast, Golden Guardians or the new FlyQuest could come right in and take that eighth seed.
6. Immortals (Down 1)
Immortals are starting to become the gatekeepers of the top of the league. They can beat everyone below them but can’t seem to break the top five. Luckily for them, there are still five weeks left and plenty of opportunities against these top LCS teams. Some changes in draft and decision-making at the end of games could help IMT go a long way.
5. Evil Geniuses (Down 1)
Is it time for Contractz to step in for EG? It would seem as though he should at least see some time considering how well he played against TSM this past weekend. Either way, EG continued their 2-1 weekends with a loss to a TL that was still missing Alphari and Santorin. There is not much else to say other than EG are close but not there just yet.
4. Team Liquid (Up 3)
Considering everything this team has been through, it is crazy that they are even having a 2-1 weekend. That was largely off the back of the three constants for TL in Jensen, Tactical and CoreJJ. They are seemingly willing this team to victory throughout their changes. This is not to say that Jenkins or Armao aren’t performing because they are honestly exceeding expectations. But, this does not happen without the core (pun intended) of the TL roster. Next week will be a challenge for TL as they get 100T and C9. Even one win against either team would go a long way in establishing confidence during a trying time.
3. Cloud9 (Even)
Cloud9 had an opportunity to vault TSM and push their way back into a tie with 100T. Instead, they squandered the opportunity with an awful performance. Zven is back and that alone provides stability for a team that desperately needs it. Similar to TL this is going to be a tough weekend for C9. They have a hungry IMT team then TL and TSM back to back. This weekend could go a long way in determining C9’s seeding heading into the summer playoffs.
2. TSM (Even)
The loss to EG this weekend was an odd one for TSM. They never seemed willing to make plays and they were punished for it by an aggressive team. Luckily they crushed TL pushing them to a 4-0 record over their long-time rivals in the regular season. This weekend they have a chance to continue their road to a first seed for the playoffs against DIG, IMT and C9. A 3-0 weekend for TSM would be massive for a team that is still trying to figure out the finer intricacies of their gameplay.
1. 100 Thieves (Even)
There is no doubt that 100 Thieves are rolling right now. They have won five straight and it seems as if no one is stopping this train. Week 5 has them leading off the weekend against TL. If 100T can get through them then it should be smooth sailing until the send of Week 6 against TSM. They are positioning themselves well for the playoffs and should start looking at their best of five strategies soon.
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