The LPL is finally back! Or, is about to be back, at least. Starting back up on Friday, the tenth, the Summer Split is arguably the more important one, as it decides who goes to Worlds. While this off-season was considerably quieter than usual, some teams, especially the ones at the lower end of the table made significant changes. The power ranking will start from the bottom, working its way up. Today’s article will cover the teams expected to finish in the bottom seven, or simply put, the teams that aren’t expected to make playoffs. Without further ado, here is part 1 of the LPL 2022 Summer Split power rankings.
17 – ThunderTalk Gaming
Once again, it is quite likely that ThunderTalk will finish the season towards the end of the table. Despite them making changes to their roster, this team will still suffer from the same problem they did in spring, a lack of identity. Every top LPL team has at least one player that is considered to be their star, the beating heart of the team. TT didn’t have one in spring, and with a mediocre roster, they finished in last place.
Despite picking up five players, none of them are likely to become the star this team needs. Beichuan and Xiaoxiang are both promising rookies, who could become that star eventually, but they need time. This roster is setting up TT for a solid future, but in their immediate future, they are likely to struggle.
16 – LGD
Speaking of struggling, LGD once again find themselves at the bottom of the power rankings. They only made a few changes, with only two new players expecting to join their starting roster, as the third will likely ride the bench. Academy mid laner Haichao should be an upgrade to Jay and YeG, but not by much. And new bot lane carry Assum is likely to start over Eric.
While both of these changes are solid, neither of them solve the problems that LGD had in spring. Jinjiao is still their support, and is playing at the exact level you would expect of a role-swapped support player who was out of pro play for a year and a half. And while Fearness and Haichao should be solid laners, Shad0w requires stronger laners so that he can dominate the jungle matchup and be the carry LGD needs.
15 – Anyone’s Legend
While the previous two teams at least tried to improve their roster, to debatable results, Anyone’s Legend picked up one player, who is likely to be a substitute. For a team that finished 5/11 and in thirteenth place, this is probably not the best move.
After such an impressive first appearance in 2021, Xiaohao had a much quieter split in 2022. To make matters worse, Forge’s assassins are unlikely to be meta, considering the mid-season update making assassin’s life more difficult. Once again, Anyone’s Legend will require that Betty and Qiuqiu find themselves an advantage in the bot lane, and that they can carry AL to victory from there.
14 – Invictus Gaming
Another LPL team that is likely to finish in the same place in the summer power rankings as they did in the spring split, Invictus Gaming also made no changes to their roster. Once again, for a team that finished in fourteenth with a 5/11 record, maybe this isn’t the best move.
However, unlike Anyone’s Legend, IG are setting themselves up for the future. With two very promising solo laners, and a solid young jungler, IG are clearly looking ahead at next year to be their big one. If this roster manages to do better than expected, and somehow make it into playoffs, then it will be a successful year for Invictus Gaming.
13 – Team World Elite
Team WE made one change to their spring roster, but that change was the most solid change from any team so far. Smlz is back in the LPL, joining his former WE Academy mid laner Xiye. The two of them were pivotal in WEA’s dominant season in the LSPL many seasons ago.
Problem is, that was many seasons ago. Right now, while they are both players that deserve nothing but respect, they are most likely past their prime. While they can create a positive environment for WE’s younger players to grow, their skill ceiling is a known quantity by now, meaning that WE will be a gatekeeping team at best.
12 – OMG
Poor OMG. After one fairly successful season in summer 2021, looks like they are back to mediocrity. While they were very close to making it back in spring, they failed to beat their direct competitors FPX, in the second to last week of the split, sealing their fate.
OMG made two moves, picking up another mid laner and another support. While the second change makes sense, benching Creme, who has been their best player, seems like an unwise course of action. It is likely that neither of these teams will solve the consistency issues that OMG faced in spring, so it is likely that they will end up around here, just outside of playoffs.
11 – Rare Atom
The final team in today’s LPL Summer Split power rankings, Rare Atom are the first team that made playoffs in spring that are unlikely to make it in summer. Once again, this is due to them not making any changes whatsoever to a roster that barely made it in the first place.
That said, Rare Atom made it in spring because they managed to be more consistent than other teams. If this team can continue with that trend, gatekeeping those below them and dropping games only to the top teams, it is very possible that they will make it back in the playoffs. While they are unlikely to dominate, they are also as unlikely to bomb out.
And that has been part one of the LPL summer split power rankings. Be sure to come back next time to read about the final 10 teams, and where they could possibly end up this summer.
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