Season 11 is here. The new ranked season started January 8, and leagues around the globe are starting up as well. LPL started on January 9, LCK on the 13th, and the LCS today! For 2021, the LCS has introduced the Lock-In Tournament where LCS teams get a chance to warm up for the season in a tournament that will see $200,000 to the winning team and a chance to enter the spring split as the favorite.
Big changes have been made to each LCS squad with every team changing at least two out of five players on their starting roster. Even many of the top teams are running rookies or LCS newcomers.
Here is the makeup of an expensive but projected high scoring lineup for January 15
MVP Tactical $11,400 DK , $10,200 FD
Top Lane Alphari $6,800 DK , $8,300 FD
Jungle Blaber $7,200 DK, $8,800 FD
Mid Lane ______ $
AD Carry ______ $
Support ______ $
TEAM ______ $
Named the 2020 Rookie of the Year, Tactical is looking to take over the LCS as the next dominant North American AD Carry. With Doublelift retiring at the end of the 2020 season that title is now up for grabs. Team Liquid versus CLG is the most lopsided match of the first day of the tournament and making Tactical the MVP of your team should result in the biggest points. Since pairing him with CoreJJ, Tactical has emerged as one of the best AD Carries in North America and is looking to solidify his place at the top this season.
One of the biggest free agent signing of the off season was Team Liquid bringing Alphari, the best top laner in Europe, over to North America. He is known for his proficiencies on carry champions, constantly dominating the opposing laner in the one versus one. CLG will be playing with substitute top laner and Alphari should be able to outclass his opponent through individual skill.
Blaber had the most up and down summer split in 2020. After winning the MVP award in the spring split, he continued to dominate enemy junglers from start to finish throughout most of the regular season. However, at the tail end of the season and in the playoffs, Blaber struggled with being too aggressive. The playstyle that allowed him to dominate for three quarters of the year ultimately failed him in the big moments. With Cloud9 buying out the greatest western player of all-time, Perkz, marking his return to the mid lane, should alleviate some of the pressure on Blaber who will no longer need to be the sole playmaker for Cloud9.
- Now what do you get if you sign up for $99 now?
- Which trio of players from one team synergize well together
- What team’s players are all undervalued
- Find out what teams are running with substitute players
- What TEAM pick is a no brainer
- The substitute player that could end up as the most valuable of the week
Although the LCS is back, the same cannot be said for all the players. Several teams are experiencing visa issues with their international/import players and will be fielding substitute players for the first week of the LCS Lock In Tournament. The starting players missing are: CLG’s starting top and jungle, Finn and Broxah, LCS newcomer and Latin America Superstar Josedeodo for FlyQuest, Immortal’s new OCE bot lane duo Raes and Destiny, and huge free agent signing Santorin for Team Liquid. Each of these players are confirmed to be out for week one of the tournament, so be very careful when choosing your lineup. Additionally, FanDuel’s list of players does not yet reflect these players’ absence and does not include their replacements.
Here’s my full lineup for the first day of the LCS Lock In Tournament
MVP Tactical $11,400 DK , $10,200 FD
Top Lane Alphari $6,800 DK , $8,300 FD
Jungle Blaber $7,200 DK, $8,800 FD
Mid Lane Damonte $6,800 DK, $8,500 FD
AD Carry FBI $7,000 DK, $9,500 FD
Support Huhi $5,200 DK, $7,000 FD
TEAM Team Liquid $5,600 DK, $7,600 FD
Remaining Salary $0 DK, $100 FD
The first match of the day sees 100 Thieves go up against TSM, in what is very similar to a rematch of the summer playoffs where we had TSM against Golden Guardians in two separate playoff series. This new 100 Thieves roster is four out of five of the former Golden Guardians members, and with Ssumday returning, 100 Thieves is looking to get back on top. TSM managed to reverse sweep Golden Guardians 3-2 in their losers bracket match to eliminate them and would then go on to win the summer split. However, we won’t mention anything about their world championship performance. But let’s not forget, Golden Guardians destroyed them in the prior best-of-five earlier in the playoffs.
TSM on the other hand, have some pretty big shoes to fill with their roster. Doublelift and Bjergsen, arguably the two most accomplished LCS players of all time, have both retired from competitive play, Doublelift going into streaming and Bjergsen has transitioned into the head coaching role for TSM. Spica is the only returning member from last year’s TSM lineup, and with these massive roster changes I favor 100 Thieves over TSM in the first match of the day. The trio of Damonte , FBI, and Huhi work perfectly together as Damonte and Huhi play a very supportive role making plays and engagements for FBI who emerged as the next young superstar AD Carry in the LCS. As the meta seems to be shifting to more mid and bot lane centric and less about following your jungler 24/7 this should allow both Damonte and FBI to really step up and score big for 100 Thieves.
Almost all 100 Thieves players are undervalued as they are the fourth cheapest players across all roles. You can consider taking any combinations of 100 Thieves players to fill out your roster if you need cheaper options.
With two players missing from CLG’s starting lineup, Team Liquid is the no-brainer TEAM pick. CLG will be without their two biggest acquisitions of the off season. Both Broxah and Finn are currently unable to play in the LCS until they acquire their working visas to fly to North America and compete. It is currently unknown when they will be available to travel and play for CLG. Although Team Liquid is also experiencing the same issues with their jungler Santorin (who is set to arrive next week), they have a very capable backup in Armao ($6,600 DK, N/A FD). Formerly known as Grig, he is an LCS veteran who has been playing in the LCS since 2017 and should be considered if you need a cheaper jungle option.
Best of luck and have fun!
