Fantasy LCS Love/Hate: Spring 2016 Week 3
What a wild ride! The constant stream of substitutes, upsets, and even a game forfeiture caused chaos in Fantasy LCS last week!
NA was particularly tumultuous, and we now know that we all need to pay close attention to roster announcements all the way up to game time. Remember, you can always find important Fantasy LCS news, like roster swaps, in the top banner of your league page on the Fantasy LCS website.
A few roster changes have already been announced for next week, and we'll be taking those into account for our picks below.
Keep an eye on the Fantasy LCS website, though, to catch any last-minute surprises!
For Fantasy Week 3, We Love...
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OG's Zven (vs. ROC, EL)
I think OG had the hardest starting schedule of any LCS team. In the first two weeks they played against FNC, H2K, UOL, and VIT! That's every other team that was projected to end in the top half of the standings. That initial trial-by-fire seemed to catch the laid-back veterans of OG off guard and they stumbled a bit.
Hopefully that lured some of their owners into dissatisfaction. Do whatever you can to trade for OG players now, because it's time for them to go on a rampage through the lower-tier teams. Their upcoming schedule is as soft as a marshmallow and Zven looked to be back to 100% last week on his brutal Kalista game (23 points).
On the flip side of that, EL have skated through the easiest first two weeks schedule against SPY, ROC, GIA, and G2. And ROC has done nothing but struggle since their first game. Zven and his buddies in blue should be diving into piles of fantasy points like Scrooge McDuck this week.
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FNC's Spirit (vs. G2, SPY)
I really like FNC's chances in fantasy this week for a similar reason -- they fought through tough teams the past two weeks and finally get to enjoy a softer schedule. SPY should crumble at the site of FNC's aggression, and G2 should make them work for their win, which is even better than a stomp fantasy-wise.
In particular, I think Spirit will play a big part in getting his laners rolling early, and (this is a big plus for potential stomp-games) he doesn't need to wait for the late-game to start racking up fantasy points. He should be involved right from the get go and have a high Kill Participation.
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TIP's Gate (vs. DIG, TL)
Is it too early to believe the hype? Maybe not. TIP finally has all five of their starting players together, and collectively blew people's minds by going 2-0 last weekend, despite never having played a game of LoL together before Sunday!
But that doesn't instantly mean that TIP is a super team, but I am reassured by how smart their draft was in that second game. They exploited Renegades' reliance on very specific champion picks for their support, Remi, to ensure that they got Gate on Gangplank, an OP top lane champion that he's super comfortable on.
Even though Gate has been bouncing around many different positions on the team, he's still considered a support player in Fantasy LCS and fits into that roster spot. That means that, depending on their roster situation next week, you'll either (1) get to start a top laner in your support spot or (2) finally get to have Gate in the role he's supposed to be playing (and where he'll, in theory, be most comfortable).
If he's in support, I especially like these matchups. TL is looking better, but both DIG and TL have been giving up a lot of points to enemy supports so far (17 points/game average), thanks to their 15 deaths/game average in losses!
Don't go hype-crazy, though. This is still a risky start because TIP is a relatively unknown and TL is looking better every game.
But We Hate...
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ROC's Betsy (vs. OG, H2K)
I originally had EL's Eika on this list, but the news that UOL has to play without their stud Diamond actually redeemed his chances this week. Sadly, Betsy and the Roccats didn't catch that sort of lucky break. They're going up against two dominant teams.
Betsy has looked solid so far and has been a fairly stable fantasy performer in the mid lane, even when his team's losing, which could make him a decent flex pick on a good schedule. But OG and H2K looked to be an entire level above everyone else in their region last week, and it's quite unlucky that Roccat faces both of them in one week.
No matter the size of your league, you should be able to find a safer mid laner to start.
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REN's Crumbz (vs. IMT, CLG)
It's no secret that Renegades have struggled to engage during team fights this Split. Heck, Jatt even made a joke on the analyst deck last week about teams just needing to draft a poke composition against them to win.
The joke was tongue-in-cheek, but the implications for your fantasy team are very real. Until Renegades show that they can fix their current problems, you don't want to risk playing them against stud teams like IMT and CLG.
Crumbz, in particular, is a tough sell in fantasy. He's barely staying above their support Remi in average points/game so far and he's well below the more enticing picks of Freeze and Alex Ich.
I'm all for taking chances on underdogs, but there are better odds to gamble on in Week 3.
Josh Augustine's favorite champion is Janna, he's never enjoyed a Darius, and he will always go for the kill, even when he knows he shouldn't. He currently works as a game designer at Daybreak Games. He’d love to talk with you on Twitter.