Fantasy Love/Hate: Week 2

After a Super Week filled with upsets, disappointments, and half-hearted base races, the time has come once again to determine who to start, and who to bench, for your fantasy team in Week 2. Remember that the purpose of the love/hate is to help provide clarity in the murky depths of your fantasy roster. With that in mind, here are the players we love and hate this week.

For Fantasy LCS Week 2, we love...

Cop (vs. C9/EG) – While Curse as a whole ended Super Week with a disappointing record, the team showed some real promise for the rest of the split. With Xpecial at the helm, their team-fights were strong. Cop (65.06) ended Week 1 with a higher fantasy total than Sneaky (62.68), and just two points below Doublelift (67.51). The veteran carry has finished his last two LCS splits with the third highest KDA among AD carries, and history is repeating itself through Week 1 this split. As the only winless team in the NA LCS, the Evil Geniuses appear to be the most favorable matchup for any team, and Cop gets his turn this week.

Mimer (vs. CW/GMB) – With 69 points, Mimer finished Week 1 with the third most fantasy points among EU Top laners. With matchups against two of the weakest teams thus far, Mimer has a very good chance to continue his success from last week. Depending on how your draft went, Mimer may not be a must start for your team, but his success thus far demands that he should be owned in every league.

YellOwStaR (vs. GMB/MIL) – While Fnatic look to be a bit out of sorts, their bottom lane remains among the best in the LCS. Both Rekkles and YellOwStaR finished Week 1 within the top 8 of highest fantasy points at their respective positions. With a favorable matchup against Gambit, and a full week to prepare for the newly invigorated Millenium, expect Fnatic’s bottom lane success to continue unabated.

But we hate...

Gambit Gaming (vs. FNC/SHC) - The mantra for Week 2 is "don't overreact to Week 1." This is true for all teams not named Gambit Gaming. The once great roster has lost its key star, and the rest of the team is clearly worse with Alex Ich's absence. The Mid lane, once the team's greatest strength, is now its most vulnerable point. Not a single Gambit player broke 50 fantasy points in Week 1. With matchups against Fnatic and a seemingly stronger Supa Hot Crew, Gambit will continue to be a team to avoid on all fronts.

ZionSpartan (vs. LMQ/TSM) – ZionSpartan ranked only fifth among NA Top laners in Week 1 (9th overall), his solid performance is unlikely to continue in Week 2. He faces the two highest scoring Top laners in his matchups this week, and Dignitas as a whole must contend with perhaps the most difficult schedule of the week. As part of a very new roster, there is very little data to back up this pick—it is based almost entirely on matchup. With Dignitas facing top NA teams this week, there is a real chance that ZionSpartan ends the week as one of the worst Top laners.

Altec (vs. COL/CRS) – EG’s bottom lane had a very average debut in Week 1. Krepo finished near the bottom of the Support rankings (13th overall), while Altec ended the week in the same exact spot (13th in pts/game for ADC's). While his matchups may not seem too rough on the surface, this week will likely be a struggle for EG's bottom lane. In their win against Cloud9, compLexity found their success by attacking C9’s bottom lane early and often, providing RobertxLee with an early triple kill. As their only point of success to draw from, compLexity may look to repeat this strategy against EG.

Both Curse and EG have replaced a member of their bottom lane, the only difference being that Curse added an All Star veteran, while EG swapped out one of the longest tenured players in League of Legends for an unproven rookie. Altec could very well prove to be a star by the end of the split, but it is too early to trust the newcomer.