Fantasy Love/Hate: Week 8

It's been drama-packed in each LCS and the same should be expected for the upcoming set of matches. Over in the EU LCS, the landscape is starting to settle; but, the NA LCS' parity is providing fantasy sharks with plenty of opportunity and potential big rewards. Here's the next edition of who we love and who we hate.

For Fantasy LCS Week 8, We Love…

XiaoWeiXiao (vs. DIG, COL)

XiaoWeiXiao's gameplay (even against strong opposition) gives him the nod for inclusion in our "love" section. As Week 7's third highest overall scorer (98.0 pts), the ruthless Mid laner is in monster form. This week, LMQ plays against Team Dignitas and compLexity. On paper, the match-up against first-place Team Dignitas could be difficult, but the NA LCS leaders struggled to contain playmakers last week. In both of Team Dignitas' victories, the opposing Mids ran amuck regardless; EG's Pobelter and TSM's Bjergsen averaged 467.5 CS and they had a combined KDA of 10/4/4 (33.3 pts combined). In DIG's losses, the results were similar (C9's Hai was the leading killer with a 6/3/5 KDA, 21.7 pts). Meanwhile, compLexity continues to give up tons of points to opposing Mids (22.8 pts/game through Week 7). XiaoWeiXiao should be near the top of the leaderboards once again.

Mor (vs. DIG, COL)

It's another LMQ recommendation, but a necessary mention. Mor's aggressive play and involvement in fights (173 assists, No. 2 overall) make him one of the best Support picks in fantasy. LMQ's aggressive style and relentless pace helps Mor's value as more opportunity equals more fantasy points. Perhaps the biggest sign for Mor's continued excellence was his great Week 7. He was projected to score only 50.7 points, but blew that out of the water by dropping 82.5 on his opponents. The schedule for Week 8 should be another fruitful one. He's projected at a modest 29 points, but that should be the floor at worst as he's averaging 23.1 pts/game against compLexity alone.

MrRalleZ (vs. FNC, GMB)

MrRalleZ' current momentum (23/8/23, 95.5 pts in Week 7) should only continue in Week 8 and the best news for the matchup-proof ADC is that he is 2-0 against Fnatic (the toughest of the two teams on the schedule). In their last meeting, MrRalleZ had the second-highest CS in the game (341) and sported a strong 2-1-9 KDA score line. Meanwhile, Gambit Gaming's roster has been thrown for a loop with Darien and Diamond moving out of the line-up this week. The Russians are coming off a 0-4 streak, the perfect setting for a star ADC like MrRalleZ to capitalize on. Another strong performance should put him firmly in the "top ADC" discussion.

But, We Hate…

Imaqtpie (vs. LMQ, CLG)

The ADC of a top team normally doesn't fall into a list of "avoid," but Imaqtpie is a special exception. He's received the short end of the stick as part of a farm-hungry core of Team Dignitas that includes Shiphtur and ZionSpartan. In Week 7, despite averaging 414 CS over the four games, he only went 10/8/17. In comparison, Shiphtur averaged 407.25 CS (22/7/13 KDA) and ZionSpartan averaged 364.5 CS (12/8/15 KDA). He only scored 58.1 pts, putting him in the bottom half of LCS pros (50th overall out of 80). This week, he's projected to score a healthy 35 points, but don't be fooled, there are simply too many mouths to feed on Dignitas.

Celaver (vs. SK, ALL)

ROCCAT is coming off an impressive 3-1 Week 7, but their players' fantasy numbers continue to struggle. Celaver's conservative preference keeps him alive in the majority of team skirmishes, but it also restricts his opportunity to score points (15.5 pts/game, 13th overall ADC). A rising team should prompt excitement, but ROCCAT's ADC is just too safe to consider despite his team's improved performance. On top of everything is ROCCAT's strength of schedule, where they'll face off against European powerhouses, SK Gaming and Alliance (combined 25-11 record). Both teams rank in the top 5 in terms of giving up the fewest points to opposing bot lanes (ADC + Support). Expect Celaver to struggle to find fantasy points this week.