Cloud 9 and Alliance renewed their rivalry from Worlds and we got our first taste of Unicorns of Love's horsepower against established NA teams this past weekend at IEM San Jose. While it was great to get an early look at some LCS competition, it can be difficult to assess exactly what these games mean in terms of the landscape of the 2015 LCS season. In fact, there were five big questions raised by this weekend’s event that will be answered once the new season begins.
1. Who is the best carry in the LCS?
Last season the highly touted Martin "Rekkles" Larsson joined the LCS ranks as Fnatic’s AD carry. For two years Rekkles had been considered a world class carry, but was unable to compete at the highest level due to his age. From his first game as a pro player, the young star lived up to the hype. While Fnatic’s season was ultimately a disappointment, Rekkles’ exceptional play caught the eye of Alliance, who bought out the prodigy’s contract this offseason.
In San Jose, Rekkles faced off against a uniquely underrated carry in Sneaky. When Cloud 9 first joined the LCS, Sneaky was regarded as more of a utility player than a star carry, particularly due to the team’s frequent use of Ashe. Last season, Sneaky took on more of a traditional carry role on the team, but was still not considered a star like Meteos or Balls.
However, this weekend, Sneaky shattered any misconception about his strength as a player. His positioning was flawless every game, his stat lines were outstanding, and he even earned himself a pentakill against the Unicorns of Love in the Finals. The rest of the team looks as strong as ever, but if Sneaky has truly become elite, just how far can Cloud 9 go?
2. Can UOL keep surprising everyone?
All weekend long, fans eagerly waited to see which champions Unicorns of Love were going to choose. The crowd roared when Poppy was locked in for the top lane, and even the shoutcasters were left speechless when Twisted Fate made his debut in the jungle. Despite their struggles in the final match against Cloud 9, the Unicorns of Love remained dedicated to their unique champion selection. Now, with a larger fan base and greater expectations, will they remain true to their team identity or pivot and go with established meta picks?
3. Is TSM struggling with its new roster?
Before IEM San Jose, TSM signed Santorin, a popular challenger level jungler, to take the place of Amazing who left the team to return to Europe after Worlds. With the rest of the 2014 NA LCS Championship team intact, many expected TSM to have an easy road to the finals at IEM San Jose.
What they didn't expect was how much TSM would struggle against the Unicorns of Love. At first glance, it appeared that Santorin was providing very little impact on either game. Many fans attributed the loss to his lack of presence in the early game. However, TSM’s problems may run deeper than their new jungler.
Bjergsen was unable to contain a rookie mid laner in PowerofEvil, and the team was completely caught off guard by a Twisted Fate jungle pick. Bjergsen gave up first blood to a Twisted Fate gank, and was unable to really make an impact in either game. Most glaring of the team’s issues was the ill-advised base race in game two. TSM was crippled by indecision and essentially gave up the game. The North American fan favorites may have gone far at the World Championship, but has Team SoloMid taken a major step backwards?
4. Can Alliance adapt in time?
Froggen’s teams have always struggled with big changes to the game. This weekend was no different, with Alliance looking out of sync against Cloud 9. Shook returned to Elise, a jungler that many consider irrelevant on the new patch. Even Wickd and Froggen stuck to champions that have been successful in the past, rather than trying to surprise a strong opponent. Based on their performance, Alliance simply look behind other teams adapting to the new Summoner’s Rift. Will Froggen be able to get his team caught up to other EU squads that are already innovating?
5. Did Cloud9 shine, or did other teams underperform?
Based on their performance at IEM San Jose, Cloud9 look poised to run away with the NA LCS this season. They took care of Alliance, and they trounced the Unicorns of Love, who put the screws to Team SoloMid. Every member of C9 had time to shine throughout the weekend, and the team looks completely in sync. However, the weekend’s success has to be put into perspective.
The Unicorns of Love seemed incredibly strong when they deftly handled TSM. However, they were unable to even take a game off of Cloud9. Did C9 overwhelm a new EU powerhouse, or did UOL simply surprise a TSM squad with a brand new jungler, and luck their way into the finals? Rekkles had a strong series, but he is still fitting into the Alliance roster. Would Cloud9 have succeeded as easily if they faced Alliance a month from now?
There is still plenty of time for each team to sort out their problems before the new LCS season begins. Cloud9 cannot afford to use this tournament as a measuring rod for their own strength. Things look good now, but Meteos and company will need to stay hungry if they want to carry this momentum into a productive spring split.
By participating in IEM San Jose, these four teams gained insight not only into their competition, but into their own offseason issues. Each team will need to look at their own questions, and hopefully find answers before the 2015 spring split begins.
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