While the Mid-Season roars on, with the LPL being represented by RNG at MSI, some teams have some shopping to do before the next split. Be it because they need to replace underperforming ones, or they need a new player for a role, most teams will undergo changes. This series will explore what changes the teams can make to improve for the Summer Split. Covering four teams at a time, the series will start from the bottom and work its way up. Today’s teams are ThunderTalk Gaming, LGD, WE and Invictus Gaming. Without futher ado, here are changes the teams can make.
Image Courtesy of Leaguepedia
Current roster:
Top Lane: New
Jungle: Chieftain
Mid: Ucal
Bot Lane Carry: Puff
Support: Southwind
It’s hard to measure TT’s strengths. Ucal AND Chieftain joined well into the start of the season, and even when they joined, they didn’t bring what was expected of them. New also had a forgettable split. However, the more glaring issue was their inconsistent bot lane. While Puff had some amazing games, he had other games where he simply was a non-factor. And his partner in crime, Southwind, has even more consistency issues.
Taking this into consideration, a good option for a bot lane would be to pick up MAX’s duo in Xiaguang and Xinmo. Xiaguang, formerly know as BBD spend quite some time with EDG and EDG’s academy team. And Xinmo had a brief stay in the LPL, playing for BLG. Both of these changes should help ThunderTalk Gaming stabilize and maybe make playoffs in the Summer Split.
Image Courtesy of Leaguepedia
Current roster:
Top Lane: Fearness
Jungle: Shad0w
Mid: YeG
Bot Lane Carry: Eric
Support: Jinjiao
Oh LGD. It feels like every year, LGD fans are put through the same trials and tribulations. The team has a poor spring, which makes the team spend massive amounts in the summer, in an attempt to bring the team up to par. While Shad0w is likely to remain, and Fearness and Eric might stay, YeG and Jinjiao need to be replaced if LGD truly want to contend with even the middle of the pack teams. In YeG’s case, there are a few choices to go with.
If an untested in the LPL rookie is what they want, than Pinz from BLG’s academy team is the best in the market right now. BLG Academy stomped the LDL this spring, and Pinz was by far the best mid laner. However, if LGD want a slightly more experienced player, Shanks from WE, Captain from TT or Cryin from Ultra Prime are good choices. However, in Jinjiao’s case, LGD don’t really have that many choices. Jwei, also from BLG’s academy team, is by far the best choice on the market, with Top Esports’s Zhuo also being a possibility.
Image Courtesy of Leaguepedia
Current roster:
Top Laner: Biubiu
Jungler: Beishang
Mid Lane: Xiye
Bot Lane Carry: Xing
Support: Kedaya
Another team who’s fans must be in pain is WE. After almost making it to World’s last summer, their roster finished as the third worst team in spring. To be fair, they lost 3 of their five players, and one of the two that remained only played towards the end of the split. With Beishang being with the team from the start, WE could pick up more wins. However, Biubiu cannot continue to underperform, if WE want to make it to the playoffs.
Neny from Invictus Gaming would be a good move. Invincible, from V5 87, V5’s academy team, would also be a great choice. However, another change they could make, although risky, would be to move Shanks to the bot lane. Xing nor Stay have the killer instincts needed to carry a game, something that Shanks does have. It’s a risky change, but it could pay dividends.
Image Courtesy of Leaguepedia
Current roster:
Top Lane: Zika
Jungle: Xun
Mid Lane: Yuekai
Bot Lane Carry: Wink
Support: Lucas
Invictus Gaming are one of the few teams that shouldn’t change that much for Summer. In fact, it’s arguably the opposite that they need to do. During their Spring Split, they brought Mole in, out of no where, replacing Yuekai. The team started to stumble and underperform, resulting in Yuekai’s return and they ended Top Esports’s winning streak. Wink coming in for Ahn was also a bit random, but that one at least had a generally positive effect. Considering Invictus Gaming isn’t assembling a roster to win the LPL, but to allow their players to evolve into champions over time, changing the roster constantly will do the opposite of what you want. Choose a roster from the players you already have, and stick with it. That’s the best thing IG can do for the Summer Split.
And that concludes the first episode of the LPL Mid-Season shopping lists. Make sure to come back next time, where the next four teams will be analyzed.
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